German defense minister visits Greek Cypriot administration

By Ahmet Gencturk

ANKARA (AA) – The German defense minister visited the Greek Cypriot administration over the weekend, local media reported.

Citing administration defense sources, the daily Cyprus Mail reported that on Sunday Christine Lambrecht, accompanied by a delegation of German deputies, discussed issues related to the defense sector and prospects for deepening defense ties with her counterpart Charalambos Petrides.

The parties also exchanged views on regional issues, including the ongoing war in Ukraine and the situation in the Eastern Mediterranean.

The daily stressed that the administration hailed Lambrecht’s visit as a milestone for advancing bilateral relations.

In September, the US announced that under the Defense Department National Guard’s State Partnership Program, the Greek Cypriot administration has been paired with the National Guard in the US state of New Jersey.

Also in September, the US lifted an arms embargo on the Greek Cypriot administration in force since 1987, in a move strongly condemned both by the Türkiye and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC).

- Decades-long dispute

Cyprus has been mired in a decades-long dispute between Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots despite a series of diplomatic efforts by the UN to achieve a comprehensive settlement.

Ethnic attacks starting in the early 1960s forced Turkish Cypriots to withdraw into enclaves for their safety.

In 1974, a Greek Cypriot coup aimed at Greece’s annexation of the island led to Türkiye’s military intervention as a guarantor power to protect Turkish Cypriots from persecution and violence. As a result, the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus was founded in 1983.

It has seen an on-and-off peace process in recent years, including a failed 2017 initiative in Switzerland under the auspices of guarantor countries Türkiye, Greece, and the UK.

The Greek Cypriot administration entered the EU in 2004, the same year the Greek Cypriots single-handedly blocked a UN plan to end the longstanding dispute.​​​​​​​