The background to the complete lifting of the arms embargo on Cyprus by the US.
Cyprus: The US decision to completely lift the arms embargo imposed on the Republic of Cyprus is historic.
The embargo was imposed 35 years ago, in the distant 1987, so the move by the Americans, at a given time when the atmosphere in the Greek-Turkish and Eastern Mediterranean smells of “gunpowder”, was an important development for Greece and Cyprus.
In Turkey, of course, they are boiling and there is fear of a heated episode on the part of Erdogan, but for now there is a mood for a meeting between the Turkish president and his American counterpart, Joe Biden. At the same time, the Turks are asking the US to review their decision, a possibility that has little to no chance.
The correct manipulations of the Republic of Cyprus that convinced the Americans to give a “green light” for the sale of military equipment to Cyprus, has made Erdogan “boiling”. And this as every effort he has made in order for his country to convince the United States to upgrade its F-16s to Vipers (as has been done with Greece) has fallen on deaf ears.
However, the lifting of the embargo will continue to be renewed annually, as the 2019 East Med Act and the 2020 National Defense Appropriation Act (NDAA) provide that the US president must certify to the relevant committees of Congress that the Republic of Cyprus continues to cooperate with the US government in a number of critical areas.
“I welcome and express my particular satisfaction with the decision of the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to completely lift the US arms embargo to Cyprus”, says the Minister of Foreign Affairs Nikos Dendias in a post on twitter.
“I believe that this decision is a political milestone for the relations between the Republic of Cyprus and the United States of America”, emphasizes Mr. Dendias.
“This decision, which contradicts the principle of the equality of the two sides on the island and will make the Greek Cypriot side more intransigent, will negatively affect the efforts to resolve the Cypriot issue” states the Turkish Foreign Ministry and adds that “it will lead to an arms race on the island and will harm peace and stability in the Eastern Mediterranean”.
With posts on Twitter, the President of the Republic of Cyprus, Nikos Anastasiadis, as 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 of the complete lifting of the US arms embargo on Cyprus, says President Anastasiades and points out: “This is a landmark decision, which reflects the growing strategic relationship between the two countries, including of 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.”
