| Author |
Message |
Khan
Deputy
Joined: 13 Nov 2005
Posts: 1092
Location: London
|
|
| I know a popular theory among Greek Cypriot is that Turkey was itching to invade Cyprus and that protection of Turkish Cypriot's was just an excuse. Yet I would like to know the interests Greek Cypriot believe Turkey has in Cyprus other than the protection of Turkish Cypriots. If anything the island has been a burden for Turkey, diplomatically and financially. So why do Greek Cypriot believe Turkey always had its eye on Cyprus? |
|
| Back to top |
|
respiridus
Deputy
Joined: 26 Oct 2005
Posts: 1966
Location: Pera Orinis, Nicosia, Cyprus
|
|
Turkey wants to have a strong military presence in Cyprus, to make sure that nobody can use the island as a base against its mainland.
Simple enough??? |
|
| Back to top |
|
Khan
Deputy
Joined: 13 Nov 2005
Posts: 1092
Location: London
|
|
| Who is going to attack Turkey from Cyprus? Certainly not the Greek Cypriot, not the British, who? Greece? They already border Turkey and have hundres of islands in the Aegean. So i see no military threat to Turkey from which Cyprus could be used. |
|
| Back to top |
|
respiridus
Deputy
Joined: 26 Oct 2005
Posts: 1966
Location: Pera Orinis, Nicosia, Cyprus
|
|
| Quote: |
| Who is going to attack Turkey from Cyprus? Certainly not the Greek Cypriot, not the British, who? Greece? They already border Turkey and have hundres of islands in the Aegean. |
Turkey is also eyeing the Aegean islands... Why do you think they have proclaimed a casus belli in case Greece decides to expand its sea territory to 12 miles?
| Quote: |
| So i see no military threat to Turkey from which Cyprus could be used. |
Perhaps we can convince Turkey to see things in the same way?  |
|
| Back to top |
|
bg_turk
Deputy
Joined: 08 Oct 2005
Posts: 1317
Location: Bulgaria
|
|
| Khan wrote: |
| I know a popular theory among Greek Cypriot is that Turkey was itching to invade Cyprus and that protection of Turkish Cypriot's was just an excuse. Yet I would like to know the interests Greek Cypriot believe Turkey has in Cyprus other than the protection of Turkish Cypriots. If anything the island has been a burden for Turkey, diplomatically and financially. So why do Greek Cypriot believe Turkey always had its eye on Cyprus? |
Khan it is naive to believe that Turkey's sole aim in the intervention was to help Turkish Cypriots, Turkey had very strong strategic interests on the island, since had the island fallen in the hands of greeks Turkey would find itself encircled by greek islands on all sides, and would be blocked from free access to the mediteranean sea, something that is currently happening in the aegean. Greece is attempting to block the aegan to Turkish vessels.
Even Bulent Ecevit acknowledges that Cyprus is strategically important island and that Turkey, should not "loose it"
| Quote: |
| On the other hand, Cyprus's strategic importance has increased in the recent days. Its strategic importance was great anyway. May be you know; there is a part called "Cyprus's importance for Turks" in Shakespeare's Othello. This means that an English poet lived in the 16th century knows the importance of Cyprus for Turks and utters it. This importance has much more increased today. Especially, the importance of Turkey, Kartal Cape in Cyprus and Eastern Mediterranean due to the pipelines and Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan project, has increased more. It can be easily seen in the map and if you have paid attention, when Annan plan came on agenda, they first put forward Karpaz. |
http://www.turkishnewsline.com/soylesi.php?detayid=3 |
|
| Back to top |
|
Crash Test Dummy
Warnings : 3
Ministerial
Joined: 25 Sep 2005
Posts: 4941
Location: London(ish)
|
|
| You could literally take over Cyprus in about 9 hours if you really wanted to. From there you could launch an attack on Turkey. |
|
| Back to top |
|
CY
Mukhtar/is
Joined: 09 Oct 2005
Posts: 601
Location: London/Warwick
|
|
Khan,
if you do not agree that Turkey invaded Cyprus for military reasons, what to you believe the reason to be? |
|
| Back to top |
|
cannedmoose
Warnings : 4
Moderator
Joined: 12 Aug 2005
Posts: 5358
Location: National Forest, England
|
|
| If I remember correctly, was it not Ecevit who argued that Cyprus was 'the dagger pointing at Turkey's heart'? Despite the obvious strategic imbalance between Turkey and its vast armed forces and Cyprus, this continues to be the prevailing ideology in Turkish military circles. It stems from the days when Cyprus did guard the gateway to southern Turkey and could be regarded as a threat to Turkish shipping lanes in the area. But this time was when there was a serious risk that Cyprus could become an integral part of Greece, a threat that is no longer credible. Cyprus on its own is absolutely no threat to Turkey, who is (with the possible exception of Israel), the regional superpower. The sooner this anachronistic notion is consigned to the past, the better. |
|
| Back to top |
|
Crash Test Dummy
Warnings : 3
Ministerial
Joined: 25 Sep 2005
Posts: 4941
Location: London(ish)
|
|
| Why is the military still in Cyprus? The race riots no longer happen. The Turkish cypriots are in no real danger from Greek Cypriot's. |
|
| Back to top |
|
Dhavlos
Warnings : 1
Site Admin
Joined: 13 Aug 2005
Posts: 4697
Location: Birmingham
|
|
| Thats a matter of opinion CTD, Turkey still thinks there is a'threat' (they say), but Greek Cypriots think there is no threat. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Register 
Log in 
Album 
Home 
