EU must consider "severe" sanctions on Turkey, Greece says

European Union leaders should impose "severe" economic sanctions on Turkey for a limited time if Ankara does not remove its military vessels and gas drilling ships from waters off Cyprus, Greece's deputy foreign minister said on Thursday.

"The sanctions should put this pressure, to be severe, for a limited time, but severe, in order to send the message that Europe is here to negotiate but is also here to defend its values," Miltiadis Varvitsiotis told the European Parliament's foreign affairs committee.

EU leaders will hold a special summit on Sept. 24-25 to discuss how to resolve the crisis between Cyprus and Turkey over energy resources in the Eastern Mediterranean.

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