Turkey said that the EU sanctions will not affect its activities related to gas production in the eastern Mediterranean, the Turkish Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

The decisions taken by the EU Council yesterday will not affect our country's determination to continue hydrocarbon production in the eastern Mediterranean, TASS reported referring to the statement.

The Turkish MFA also said the country intends to further intensify its gas production activities.

The European Union imposed sanctions on July 15 on Turkey due to drilling in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of Cyprus, where large deposits of natural gas were discovered. Ankara, challenging the boundaries of the EEZ, sent a Fatih vessel to the area, stating that the drilling will continue until September 3. Cyprus’ authorities on June 10 authorized the arrest of the crew members of a Turkish drilling ship. Turkey also sent a second vessel - Yavuz - on July 4 to conduct geological exploration on the shelf. Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan declared the country's readiness to defend the rights of Turkish Cypriots to shelf fields, including the use of armed forces.