Following defense deal, can Turkey, US split difference over Cyprus, East Med?
The new defense cooperation agreement between the United States and Cyprus has displeased Turkey.
A recent defense agreement between the United States and the Republic of Cyprus has irritated Turkey, with Ankara viewing the growing US alignment with Greece and Cyprus as a containment tactic to cut it off from the eastern Mediterranean.
The United States and Cyprus signed the Roadmap for Bilateral Defense Cooperation on Sept. 10, which the US Department of Defense called “a foundational agreement on the priorities and direction of the bilateral defense relationship over the next five years.”
Turkey’s national broadcaster, TRT, called the agreement a “scandal,” while the Turkish Foreign Ministry criticized Washington for taking steps “to the detriment of the security of the Turkish Cypriot side," which would "undermine the neutral US position toward the island of Cyprus and [make] it more difficult to reach a just, lasting and sustainable settlement of the Cyprus issue.”
Experts who spoke to Al-Monitor pointed out that much of the US alignment with Greece and the Republic of Cyprus is a result of the deterioration of Turkey-US ties in recent years. And even as Turkey pursues a more independent and assertive foreign policy, it is still a NATO ally of the United States, while Cyprus is not.
