Turkey condemns US-Cyprus defense deal, urges Washington to ‘reconsider’

ANKARA — Turkey on Wednesday condemned a defense cooperation agreement between the United States and  Cyprus, accusing Washington of abandoning its neutral stance in the long-standing conflict over the divided island.

“We condemn the signing of a roadmap for enhancing the bilateral defense cooperation between the United States of America (USA) and the Greek Cypriot Administration,” the Turkish Foreign Ministry said, calling on Washington to reconsider its policies vis-a-vis Cyprus.

The United States and the Republic of Cyprus on Monday signed a “Roadmap for Bilateral Defense Cooperation,” setting “priorities and direction of the bilateral defense relationship over the next five years,” the US Department of Defense said.

Cyprus remains ethnically divided between the internationally recognized Republic of Cyprus, led by Greek Cypriots, and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, recognized only by Turkey. This division stems from Turkey’s 1974 military intervention, which followed a Greek-led coup aimed at uniting the island with Greece. Turkey, Greece and Britain — who governed the island until Cyprus gained independence in 1960 — remain guarantor powers under the island’s complex political arrangement.

In a bid to encourage peaceful resolution of the frozen conflict, and in line with its balanced foreign policy in relation to historical conflicts between Turkey and Greece, the United States had imposed arms sales embargo on the Republic of Cyprus in the late 1980s.

Yet diplomatic and military relations between Nicosia — Europe’s last divided capital— and Washington strengthen rapidly following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Amid US-led efforts to convince Nicosia to curb Russian activities on the island aimed at bypassing sanctions, the decades-old arms embargo by the United States on Cyprus was eased in 2020 and fully lifted in 2022.

The two countries also announced strategic dialogue on an array of issues, including defense, security and energy in June.

The Turkish Foreign Ministry said Wednesday that the deal would undermine the “neutral position” of the United States toward the Cyprus conflict, making it more difficult to “reach a just, lasting and sustainable settlement” on the island.

“We believe that policies that could undermine regional stability should be reconsidered,” the statement added.

The Hamas-Israel war has further increased the strategic importance of the island for Western countries. Two British bases in Greek Cyprus have been vital for logistical supplies to Israel as well as the evacuation of European and US nationals from the island. In June, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan warned the Greek Cypriots to “stay away” from the conflict, saying the bases had turned into “operation centers” in the Israel-Gaza war. Cyprus has denied these accusations.