US, Greek Cypriot administration sign defense cooperation roadmap

By Ahmet Gencturk

ATHENS (AA) – The US and Greek Cypriot administration signed a roadmap on defense cooperation, Greek media reported on Monday.

The agreement was signed by the administration’s Defense Minister Vassilis Palmas and US Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs Celeste Wallander at a ceremony in Nicosia (Lefkosa), according to Greek daily Kathimerini.

“This roadmap represents a strong commitment to further enhancing and deepening our relationship,” said Palmas.

Wallander hailed it as a milestone in bilateral relations, the daily added.

In September 2022, the US lifted an arms embargo on the Greek Cypriot administration that had been in force since 1987.

The next month, the US also announced that under the Defense Department National Guard’s State Partnership Program, the Greek Cypriot administration had been paired with the National Guard in the US state of New Jersey.

Both moves were strongly criticized by Türkiye and Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC).

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-Decades-long Cyprus problem

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 that Greek Cypriots single-handedly blocked a UN plan to end the longstanding dispute.