Turkey has vowed to reinforce its military presence in northern Cyprus, where it already has about 40,000 troops, adding to tensions with its historic foe Greece.
In a televised interview late Wednesday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan signaled that Turkey would boost its military presence on the island. Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu affirmed the plan today. “We will send both troops and arms to the island to protect the Turkish Cypriot community,” Cavusoglu said in the Aegean town of Denizli.
The Turkish statements follow Washington’s decision earlier this month to lift defense trade restrictions on Cyprus for fiscal year 2023. The decision, effective as of Oct. 1, rewards the small island state for cooperating with the United States against money laundering and denying Russian military vessels access to ports for refueling and servicing. Both points are crucial for the international embargo against Russia. But in Ankara, it has further fueled Turkish concern that the administration of US President Joe Biden is breaking away from its policy of balance between its two NATO allies in favor of Greece and Cyprus.
The internationally recognized Republic of Cyprus in the south of the island heralded the lifting of the ban as a “historic landmark” that reflected the burgeoning strategic relationship between the United States and Cyprus.
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