Entering the European Union in May 2004, the whole of the island of Cyprus is not a member of the European Union, only the Republic of Cyprus, therefore the Greek part of the island, the southern part. Indeed, the north of the island, which is what one might call the Turkish part, today the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, a self-proclaimed state and only recognized by Turkey, has been occupied by Turkey since the war. from 1974.
Cypriot Turks reside there but also Anatolian settlers sent by Ankara. Thus the island is still divided by “the green line” (the demarcation line), separating the two zones and whose security is ensured by the UN peacekeepers. Thus, Nicosia, the capital of the island, is divided into two parts, Greek and Turkish, as Berlin was once.
The many international peace negotiations are still at a standstill. And the arrival in the international sphere of Turkish President Erdogan never presumed anything good for Cyprus, on the contrary. Today, the master of Ankara wants to have control over the entire island, including and above all in the Cypriot maritime space, which generates daily tensions in this difficult area of the eastern Mediterranean.
In fact, Erdogan is trying by all means to stifle the legitimate Republic of Cyprus, as our guest, Evagoras Mavrommatis, the President of the Cypriot community for the European Union, explained to us.
As we presented in June 2019, the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of the Republic of Cyprus is rich in gas and hydrocarbons, and the Republic of Cyprus has signed operating contracts with the French and Italian companies, Total and Eni, as well as with the American company ExxonMobil. But the Turkish president is opposed to any drilling in the area, even if it means violating the Cypriot maritime space, as was the case recently when a French frigate was on the verge of a clash with the Turkish military navy.
The one and only possible drilling for Ankara are Turkish drilling. Today, if the standoff continues, one way or another between the EU and Ankara, the Cypriot deposits would be a breath of fresh air for Europe. Today, what will be the reaction of the EU, what will be the reaction of France, of the United States if Erdogan opposes by force to drilling in the Cypriot EEZ?
And that without counting on the reaction of the United Kingdom, because London still has two sovereign bases in the Republic of Cyprus, with nearly 4,200 soldiers stationed. There is also always talk of the establishment of a French naval base in the south of the Republic of Cyprus, because the authorities of the Republic of Cyprus request the presence of the French Navy, as much to protect the drilling ships. French, Italian and the Greek Cypriot EEZ.
The President of the Republic of Cyprus, Níkos Anastasiádis, intends to ask the European Commission for the right to suspend asylum requests from people “entering the country illegally”. Today, the number of migrants who entered the Republic of Cyprus illegally between January 1 and October 31, 2021 is 10,868, an increase of 38% over the whole of 2020, adding to the 33 000 illegals in the Republic of Cyprus.
Like everywhere in Europe, Erdogan is playing the migrant card to destabilize EU member states. And on November 10, the president Níkos Anastasiádis held an emergency meeting with his ministers to take action to tackle the increase in illegal immigration. And if the Republic of Cyprus continues to deploy barbed wire along the Green Line in order to curb the arrival of migrants, the situation could worsen with the influx of Lebanese migrants, whose country is plunging further and further into the chaos.
Once again, the Republic of Cyprus is caught in Erdogan’s grip, but not only her, because as Evagoras Mavrommatis has pointed out, this situation is also harmful for the Turkish Cypriots, who, without the repeated interventions of the master of Ankara, and the presence of the Turkish army in the north of the island, and the presence of the settlers, a solution could be found between Greek and Turkish Cypriots who have always lived together on the island.
Moreover, many citizens and associations have been brought together over the past ten years or so between the two communities which share many common values, Cypriot values.