On July 10, Turkey signed a memorandum of understanding with the illegal administration of Northern Cyprus for a 97-kilometer bidirectional submarine gas pipeline. The project will run from Turkey’s southern coast near Alanya to the Teknecik power station outside Kyrenia. Two parallel 22-inch lines will initially carry natural gas from Turkey to power plants in northern Cyprus that currently burn expensive liquid fuels. Turkish officials designed the system for reversible flow, allowing future eastern Mediterranean discoveries to transit northward through Turkish-controlled territory toward Europe.Ankara’s move entrenches the so-called “Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus” as a dependent entity while rejecting the sovereign rights of the internationally recognized Republic of Cyprus over its exclusive economic zone. Erdogan’s entity has harassed Cypriot drilling operations for years in waters where the European Union member holds legitimate claims under international law. The new pipeline creates permanent infrastructure that reinforces the island’s division and positions Turkey as a future transit hub for regional gas. Meanwhile, Israeli energy companies and the Netanyahu administration have long pursued cooperation with Cyprus and Greece to develop export routes that avoid such choke points and adversarial control. Major Israeli fields such as Leviathan hold more than 600 billion cubic meters in proven reserves — enough to secure southern export corridors while delivering both commercial returns and greater strategic autonomy for the Jewish state.