The president of the Greek Cypriot administration said on Sunday that his administration is committed to expanding defense and security cooperation with the U.S. despite the persistent criticism of the Turkish Cypriot side.
The announcement came after Nikos Christodoulides met with U.S. President Joe Biden last week and charted a course for the "next ambitious steps" in bilateral relations that are currently at a "historic high."
Christodoulides said his government's "clear foreign policy orientation" has resulted in deepening the Cyprus-U.S. strategic partnership over the first 18 months of his five-year term, in fields including law enforcement cooperation on countering money laundering and sanctions evasion, as well as energy.
A centerpiece of that security cooperation is the U.S.-funded center for port and maritime security where officials from neighboring countries, including Libya, Yemen and Lebanon, receive key training ranging from cybersecurity to ship inspections.
Last week, Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) Foreign Minister Tahsin Ertuğruloğlu criticized the recent meeting, arguing that nobody can ignore the existence and rights of Turkish Cypriots.
Another reason for his criticism was that this U.S. support threatens the delicate balances in the region, as "Washington attempts to intimidate the Turkish side by saying it would provide more support for the Greek Cypriot administration if the TRNC does not support federation-based discussions."
"The U.S. needs to immediately stop encouraging such impudency," Ertuğruloğlu said, as he criticized the U.S. and the global community for seeing Greek Cypriots as the sole legal representative of the island.
On the other side, responding to an Associated Press (AP) questionnaire, Christodoulides said that Greek Cyprus "has a vision to transform its immediate region, alongside its partners, into a region of promise, stability, cooperation and prosperity."
The Cypriot president said his administration is "certainly considering" procuring U.S.-made weapons following the 2020 lifting of a decades-long arms embargo.
Christodoulides argued that his adminisration’s importance is also rooted in its strategic location regarding fighting migration.
He said several countries consider Cyprus an "assisted departure hub and a Temporary Safe Location (TSL)" where the island’s ports, airports and designated temporary accommodations are used for civilian or military-led departures. He did not specify those countries.
He said Cyprus is ready to respond if and when a mass evacuation from Lebanon is set in motion.
Moreover, he pointed to the cooperation with the U.S. in terms of sending aid to Gaza.
Christodoulides said work is underway in cooperation with the U.S., the U.K., the United Arab Emirates and the European Union to re-activate the maritime route to Gaza through the Israeli port of Ashdod. Collected aid will be security-screened in Cyprus and shipped to Ashdod "for swift onward delivery to Gaza."
However, Türkiye had warned partner countries not to use Cyprus as a base to deliver arms to Israel as it could drive the island into the conflict, threatening regional peace.
The island of Cyprus has been mired in a decadeslong dispute between Turkish and Greek Cypriots despite a series of diplomatic efforts by the U.N. to achieve a comprehensive settlement. Türkiye is a guarantor country for the TRNC and fully supports a two-state solution on the island based on sovereign equality and equal international status between its two states.