Impact of the Memorandum With Libya Upon the Eastern Mediterranean Equation

The hydrocarbon reserves discovered in the Eastern Mediterranean have led to the reshaping of regional dynamics. The changing dynamics have accelerated energy competition and controversial issues and deepened the current crises in the region. With the hydrocarbon reserves discovered, the competition between the countries that want to be exporters in energy trade and the determination of maritime jurisdictions, the disagreements on the route through which the reserves to be drilled will be sold, and the search of European countries which have the highest share in the energy demand market for new markets as an alternative to countries like Russia stand to be the main issues that help deepen the crisis.

The large amount of the said reserve resource is the biggest factor that may explain the complexity of this scale. According to the estimated figures, there are 122 trillion cubic meters of hydrocarbon reserves in the region; and this richness will be an invaluable gain for any actor with high reserve share and market advantage. Therefore, a resource of this amount raises the appetite of actors who are mostly energy importers in the region.