In the neighborhood they see Washington giving state-of-the-art F-35s to Greece and upgrading F-16s to Vipers, and now Nicosia will be able to buy whatever weapon it wants.
Turkey is shocked by the US decision for the complete lifting of the arms embargo in Cyprus as broadcast by Manolis Kostidis. Ankara issued a statement condemning the decision of the White House.
“In the neighborhood they see Washington giving state-of-the-art F-35s to Greece and upgrading F-16s to Vipers, and now Nicosia he will be able to buy whatever weapon he wants” commented the correspondent of SKAI in Istanbul.
“Is this a response to the Erdogan-Putin rapprochement?” they wonder.
The announcement of the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs
“We strongly condemn the broadening of the scope of the decision taken by the US in September 2020 to lift the arms embargo against the Greek Cypriot administration (Republic of Cyprus).
We fully support the reaction of the authorities of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) regarding this decision.
This decision, which contradicts the principle of equality between the two sides on the island and will make the Greek Cypriot side more intransigent, will negatively affect efforts to resolve the Cypriot conflict. It will lead to an arms race on the island and harm peace and stability in the Eastern Mediterranean.
We call on the US to review this decision and pursue a balanced policy towards the two sides on the island.
The international community, including the US, should take note of the sovereign equality and equal international status of the Turkish Cypriot people, which was also confirmed by the Treaties of 1959-1960, and act accordingly.
In any case, Turkey, as a guarantor country, will continue to take the necessary measures within the framework of its historical and legal responsibilities in order to ensure the existence, security and peace of the Turkish Cypriots.”
Nicosia welcomes the decision
With posts on Twitter, the President of the Republic of Cyprus Nikos Anastasiadis, Mras well as the Ministries of Defense and Foreign Affairs welcome the State Department’s decision to completely lift the US arms embargo on Cyprus.
“It is with great satisfaction that I welcome the State Department’s announcement on the complete lifting of the US arms embargo on Cyprus”, says President N. Anastasiadis and points out: “This is a landmark decision, which reflects the developing strategic relationship between the two countries, including the security sector’.
Mr. Anastasiadis makes a special mention of Democratic Senator Robert Menendez, whom he publicly thanks: “I would also like to publicly thank Senator Menendez for all the work that made today’s decision possible, which is in line with his 2019 on Eastern Mediterranean Security and Energy Cooperation. Yesterday I spoke with the Senator and once again expressed my gratitude for his friendship.”
The Cypriot Ministry of Defense expresses thanks and appreciation through its post. “This strengthens our cooperation and ushers in a new era in our bilateral relations as we steadily advance an irreversible security and defense partnership,” it noted.
Finally, the Cypriot Ministry of Foreign Affairs says on Twitter: “We welcome the State Department’s decision to proceed with the complete lifting of the 1987 arms embargo against Cyprus: A political milestone that demonstrates the continued deepening of the US-Cyprus strategic cooperation in Security and Defense as an integral part of the mosaic of regional stability”.
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