This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. Please help to improve this article by introducing more precise citations.(March 2009) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
Cyprus problem
Flag map showing the current division, with territory controlled by the internationally-recognised Cyprus and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus separated by the UN buffer zone. UK bases are also depicted. See here for a more detailed map.
Date
1955-1974 (independence struggle, intercommunal violence, and coup phases) 1974–present (invasion and division phases)
Location
Cyprus
Status
Ongoing
Division of Cyprus; the United Nations establishes a buffer zone between the two sides.
Belligerents
Cyprus Supported by: Greece (with International community recognition)
Northern Cyprus Supported by: Turkey
United Nations peacekeepers Supported by: Sovereign Base Areas
v
t
e
Cyprus problem
Cyprus Emergency (1955–1959)
Cyprus crisis of 1963–64
Bloody Christmas (1963)
Battle of Tillyria (1964)
Cyprus crisis of 1967
1974 coup
1974 Turkish invasion
Battle of Pentemili beachhead
Maratha, Santalaris and Aloda massacre
S-300 crisis
Maritime zones dispute
2018 dispute
Politics of Cyprus
Constitution
Cyprus dispute
Law of Cyprus
Taxation
Executive
President
Nikos Christodoulides
Council of Ministers (Cabinet)
Legislative
House of Representatives
President: Annita Demetriou
Judiciary
Supreme Court of Cyprus
Elections
Presidential: 2018
2023
Legislative: 2011
2016
2021
European: 2014
2019
2024
List of Political Parties
Administrative divisions
Famagusta
Kyrenia
Larnaca
Limassol
Nicosia
Paphos
Foreign relations
Diplomatic missions
Cypriot nationality law
Cyprus–Greece relations
Cyprus–Egypt relations
Cyprus–Israel relations
Cyprus–Germany relations
Cyprus–United States relations
Cyprus-United Kingdom relations
Akrotiri and Dhekelia
Politics of the European Union
Cyprus portal
Other countries
v
t
e
The Cyprus problem, also known as the Cyprus conflict, Cyprus issue, Cyprus dispute, or Cyprus question, is an ongoing dispute between the Greek Cypriot community which runs the Republic of Cyprus (de facto only comprising the south of the island since the events of 1974) and the Turkish Cypriot community in the north of the island, where troops of the Republic of Turkey are deployed. This dispute is an example of a protracted social conflict. The Cyprus dispute's causes stem from ethnic Greek nationalist ideology, Greek-Cypriot sentiment, the Megali Idea and Enosis, and some of the ethnic Turkish peoples' desire for the partition of the island of Cyprus through Taksim as a means of protection of their people by what they considered to be the threat of Greek-Cypriots.
Initially, with the occupation of the island by the British Empire from the Ottoman Empire in 1878 and subsequent annexation in 1914, the "Cyprus dispute" referred to general conflicts between Greek and Turkish islanders.[1][2]
However, the current international complications of the dispute stretch beyond the boundaries of the island itself and involve the guarantor powers under the Zürich and London Agreement (namely Greece and Turkey and the United Kingdom), the United Nations, and now the European Union as well. The now-defunct Czechoslovakia and Eastern Bloc had previously also interfered politically.[3]
The problem entered its current phase in the aftermath of the 1974 Turkish invasion of Cyprus, occupying the northern third of Cyprus. Although the invasion was triggered by the 1974 Cypriot coup d'état, Turkish forces refused to depart after the legitimate government was restored. The Turkish Cypriot leadership later declared independence as the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, although only Turkey has considered the move legal, and there continues to be broad international opposition to Northern Cyprus independence. According to the European Court of Human Rights, the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus should be considered a puppet state under effective Turkish occupation, and legitimately belongs to Cyprus.[4][5][6] The United Nations Security Council Resolution 550 of 1984 calls for members of the United Nations to not recognize the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.
As a result of the two communities and the guarantor countries committing themselves to finding a peaceful solution to the dispute, the United Nations maintains a buffer zone (known as the "Green Line") to avoid further intercommunal tensions and hostilities. This zone separates the southern areas of the Republic of Cyprus (predominantly inhabited by Greek Cypriots), from the northern areas (where Turkish Cypriots and Turkish settlers now reside). The 2010s have seen warming of relations between Greek and Turkish Cypriots, with talks officially renewing beginning in early 2014. The Crans-Montana negotiations raised hopes for a long-term solution, but they ultimately stalled.[7][8] UN-led talks in 2021 similarly failed.[9]
^Anthony Eden, "Memoirs, Full Circle, Cassell, London 1960
^Jolyon Jenkins. "UK's murky role in Cyprus crisis". BBC Radio 4's Document.
^Koura, Jan (January 2021). Kedourie, Helen; Kelly, Saul (eds.). "Czechoslovakia and the 'Cyprus issue' in the years 1960–1974: Secret arms deals, espionage, and the Cold War in the Middle East". Middle Eastern Studies. 57 (4). Taylor & Francis: 516–533. doi:10.1080/00263206.2020.1860944. eISSN 1743-7881. ISSN 0026-3206. LCCN 65009869. OCLC 875122033. S2CID 234260226.
^Milano, Enrico (2006). Unlawful Territorial Situations in International Law: Reconciling Effectiveness, Legality And Legitimacy. Martinus Nijhoff Publishers. p. 146. ISBN 978-9004149397.
^Terry.D., Gill (2016). Yearbook of International Humanitarian Law 2015. Springer. p. 58. ISBN 9789462651418.
^"Cyprus's Military Balance: Greek and Turkish Forces in Comparison - Balkanalysis". www.balkanalysis.com. Archived from the original on 13 January 2018. Retrieved 11 January 2017.
^Cyprus Mail 11 Feb 2014 Joint Declaration
^Xypolia, Ilia (29 June 2017). "Are the Cyprus reunification talks doomed to fail again?". The Conversation. Retrieved 5 July 2017.
^Psaropoulos, John. "Cyprus' reunification: What next after failed talks?". www.aljazeera.com. Retrieved 24 January 2023.
Cyprusproblem, also known as the Cyprus conflict, Cyprus issue, Cyprus dispute, or Cyprus question, is an ongoing dispute between the Greek Cypriot community...
Cyprus (/ˈsaɪprəs/ ), officially the Republic of Cyprus, is an island country in the eastern Mediterranean Sea, north of the Sinai Peninsula, south of...
The Turkish invasion of Cyprus began on 20 July 1974 and progressed in two phases over the following month. Taking place upon a background of intercommunal...
Northern Cyprus, officially the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), is a de facto state that comprises the northeastern portion of the island of...
new constitution for Cyprus. Greek Prime Minister Alexandros Papagos submitted a document outlining the issues of the Cyprusproblem to the United Nations...
Asian coast, from north to south Turkey Cyprus Northern Cyprus (recognized only by Turkey, see Cyprusproblem) Akrotiri and Dhekelia (a British Overseas...
The Cyprus peace process refers to negotiations and plans aimed at resolving the CyprusProblem. The peace efforts had begun around the time of the 1974...
Christodoulides declared that his primary focus was finding a solution to the Cyprusproblem. In order to restart the negotiations between the two sides, he requested...
of Cyprus' president, Tassos Papadopoulos, said that Greek Cypriots had rejected just the Annan plan and not all solutions to the Cyprusproblem. "They...
Annan Plan (/ˈænæn/), also known as the Cyprus reunification plan, was a United Nations proposal to resolve the Cyprus dispute. The different parts of the...
The Cyprus Emergency was a conflict fought in British Cyprus between April 1955 and March 1959. The National Organisation of Cypriot Fighters (EOKA), a...
party in Cyprus. AKEL is one of the two major parties in Cyprus, and it supports a federal solution of the internal aspect of the Cyprusproblem and it...
Pakistan, India and China, the Sri Lankan Civil War; The CyprusProblem between Greek and Turkish Cypriots; the first, second, and current Sudanese Civil Wars;...
ongoing disputes between the Cypriot, Greek, and Turkish states and communities such as the Cyprusproblem, the Aegean problems, and also Maritime-border...
of Cyprus Ten city-kingdoms of CyprusCyprus in the Middle Ages Kingdom of Cyprus Venetian Cyprus Ottoman Cyprus History of Cyprus since 1878 Cyprus Emergency...
agenda with a Greek Cypriot nationalist approach to the Cyprusproblem. Cypriotism is further officially supported by the Union of Cypriots. There are also...
was appointed negotiator for the Greek Cypriot side in the talks on the Cyprusproblem, by the president of Cyprus Nicos Anastasiades, on 1 September 2013...
August 1977) was a Greek Cypriot archbishop, primate, statesman and politician, who served as the first President of Cyprus between 1960 and 1977. He...
in the CyprusProblem. The party leader, Yiannakis Omirou, was elected as President of the House of Representatives of the Republic of Cyprus, following...
Cyprus is a member of the United Nations along with most of its agencies as well as the Commonwealth of Nations, World Bank, International Monetary Fund...
of Cypriot intercommunal violence involving the two main ethnic communities, Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots, marked mid-20th century Cyprus. These...
protest and publicise the problems of the global economic and political system, as well as to raise awareness of how "the CyprusProblem is but one of the many...