Turkey slams France-Cyprus military pact as East Med rivalries deepen
Ankara says a defense deal between France and the Republic of Cyprus risks upsetting the island’s delicate balance, as defense ties among Cyprus, Greece, Israel and France deepen.
ANKARA — Turkey on Thursday accused France and the Republic of Cyprus of violating international law by signing a status of forces agreement that would provide a legal basis for French forces to operate on the divided island.
What happened: Turkish Defense Ministry spokesperson Rear Adm. Zeki Akturk said Ankara was closely monitoring what he described as a “provocation” that could destabilize the Eastern Mediterranean and increase tensions.
The remarks referred to a Status of Forces Agreement signed between France and the internationally recognized Republic of Cyprus in Nicosia on June 8, which would allow for a potential French troop deployment on the island.
“The agreement signed between France, which has no guarantor status in Cyprus, and the Greek Cypriot Administration is against international law,” Akturk said, arguing that the deal aimed to “unilaterally change the sensitive balances on the island.”
Cyprus remains divided between the EU-member Republic of Cyprus and the breakaway north, recognized only by Ankara, since Turkey’s 1974 intervention following a Greek-backed coup. Turkey, Greece and Britain remain guarantor powers under the island’s post-independence arrangements. Turkey maintains an estimated 40,000 troops in the north.
Background: The agreement signed between France and the Republic of Cyprus provides a legal framework allowing French forces to be temporarily stationed on the island, conduct joint training and exercises, and access military facilities for logistical support and transit.
In April, Greek Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides described the potential troop deployment as “exclusively for humanitarian purposes,” without elaborating.
Defense cooperation between France and Cyprus has grown since March, when an Iranian-made Shahed-type drone struck a British Royal Air Force base in southern Cyprus amid a wave of Iranian attacks across the region. While no group claimed responsibility, Cypriot and Western officials attributed the drone attack to the Lebanon-based, Iran-linked militant group Hezbollah.
Paris dispatched the Charles de Gaulle carrier strike group to the Eastern Mediterranean immediately after the drone attack that month. It also deployed specialized anti-drone and anti-missile units to the island.
Why it matters: Ankara's warning over the France-Cyprus agreement also comes amid a broadening security rivalry in the Eastern Mediterranean, where NATO member Turkey has also grown alarmed by deepening defense cooperation between its longtime rivals Greece and Cyprus as well as Israel.
Greece, Cyprus and Israel signed a trilateral military cooperation action plan in Nicosia in December for 2026. Speaking on Thursday, Akturk said any regional military alignment that ignores Turkish and Turkish Cypriot interests is bound to fail.
“We once again remind that any military alliance that ignores the sensitive balances in the region and targets the rights and interests of Turkey and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus has no chance of success against Turkey,” he said.
