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The Cyprus Issue
Will the timebomb explode over Cyprus? There has been a lot of military and diplomatic manoeuvres in the last few months by both the Greek and the Turkish sides signalling an inevitable war, but these signals seem to be more acting and posturing with neither side willing to risk the start of a war and its consequences. Although the possibility of war is not very likely, the prospects of settling the future of Cyprus does not look very promising.
To understand the conflict in Cyprus we need to go back to 1974 when Cyprus was split in two by Turkish invasion prompted by a short-lived revolution there. The northern 37 percent of the island became under the control of the Turks. In 1983, this part of the island declared itself as an independent state, which to this date is only recognized by the Turkish government. Since the division of the island, there has not been any breakthroughs, but recently tensions heightened between the Greeks and the Turks. In 1996, arguments over Irma, uninhabited rockery in the Aegean sea,brought Greece and Turkey to brink of war and beginning of this year, the decision made by Cyprus to buy Russian made surface to air missiles did not sit well with the Turks. They threatened to destroy the missiles before their deployment. It is very coincidental that tensions flared between Greeks and Turks on the eve of talks to admit (Greek) Cyprus in the European Union (EU). Or is it coincidental?
On July 16, 1997 the European Commission announced that Cyprus would be in the first wave of new entrants in the EU. This infuriated the Turks, especially since the Turkish Cypriots will not be consulted regarding the integration and they will not reap its benefits. The EU’s formal position is that if Cyprus remains divided, the Greek part could gain membership on its own. Mr. Denktash, the Turkish Cypriot leader says that he shares Mr. Clerides’s, the Greek-Cypriot leader’s, intentions of a united and federal Cyprus with both Turkish and Greek zones, but the truth seems to be the opposite. The Turkish zone seems to be happy with the status-quo or leaning toward unification with Turkey. Reports indicate that Northern Cyprus is being populated by poor Turkish immigrants from the mainland and estimates suggest that in less then 10 years mainlanders will be the majority of Turks in Turkish Cyprus. Ankara is prepared to pay for the survival of Turkish Cyprus and has extended $250 million in credit to the Turkish government there.
The possibility of (Greek) Cyprus entering EU is a thorny and humiliating situation for the Turks. It has been over 30 years since an embryonic EU promised Turkey that one day it will be able to join the union, but this has not materilized and does not seem to possible in the near future. Turkey is using Cyprus as a pawn to advance its ambitions to become part of EU. This opinion is also shared by some Turkish Cypriots who seem to be frustrated by Turkey’s self -serving policies. Mehmet Talat, the leader of the Republican Turkish Party in Northern Cyprus, whose party won 25 percent of the votes in the last parliamentary elections there, wants to reduce Turkey’s involvement in Cyprus affairs. He wants a united federal Cyprus to enter the EU. Turkey is creating problems and conflicts to earn bargaining chips to gain concessions from the Greeks. Greece is one of the EU countries that opposes Turkey’s joining the EU and is withholding long promised EU aid to Turkey by its veto power. Cyprus is one of the bargaining chips that Turkey intends to use in its quest to achieve its goals.
What could be done to ease tensions?
Greek and Turkish Cypriots should show genuine efforts to deal with the terms of reunification. As a peace gesture while the talks are going, Turkey should decrease the 35,000 troops stationed on the island and Cyprus should delay the deployment of the Russian made missiles. To appease the Turks, EU should renew its promise of one day accepting Turkey into the union on the conditions that it stabilizes its economy and cleans up its deplorable human rights record. Knowing Turkey’s past and present these conditions are almost impossible to achieve.
indirmeye kalkan da al böyle cevabini!!!!