Greeks, Greek-Cypriots and Turks have been fighting for hundreds of years over land, food, culture and language. Is it a kebab or is it a souvlaki? Is it Turkish coffee or is it Greek coffee? Who invented baklava first? ‘It’s Constantinople not Istanbul’ – the debate goes on. 

Although the rivalry between Greeks, Greek-Cypriots and Turks is the butt of many jokes in popular culture, from an international relations and international security perspective, it is a rivalry that is real and serious. With all the twists and turns that 2020 has brought, this year has also seen the resurfacing of tensions between the age-old rivals.

Timeline of recent events

• On 19 June 2019, Turkey deployed the drilling ship ‘Fatih’ off the northeast coast of Cyprus.
• On 8 July 2019, Turkey deployed a second drilling ship, the ‘Yavuz’ to explore for oil and gas off the coast of Cyprus.
• In November 2019, Turkey and the UN recognised Government of National Accord of Libya signed an agreement to carve up a large portion of the Eastern Mediterranean between them.
• On 30 December 2019, Greece, Cyprus and Israel signed the ‘East-Med’ deal for an undersea pipeline to carry gas from the southeast Mediterranean to Europe.
• On 10 July 2020, Turkey’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan announced his decision to open the historic Hagia Sophia for Muslim prayers, following a decision by a Turkish court that overturned Ataturk’s decision to convert the Eastern Orthodox church into a public museum.
• In July 2020, Turkey announced that it was sending a research ship, the ‘Oruc Reis’ to carry out a drilling servey in the waters close to the Greek island of Kastellorizo. Germany intervened but resolution talks stalled after Greece signed a deal with Egypt to set up a maritime zone.
• On 11 August 2020, the ‘Oruc Reis’ was sailing in waters between Crete and Cyprus.

Since June 2019, Turkey has engaged in exploratory drilling activities in the Eastern Mediterranean, in waters that Cyprus claims as their Exclusive Economic Zone according to the International Convention on the Law of the Sea. Cyprus is actively backed by Greece and the European Union. In a region that is increasingly hostile to Turkey, its main ally in respect of its drilling activities is the controversial Government of National Accord, in war torn Libya.

In addition, coinciding with Cypriots’ commemoration of the 46^th anniversary of the Turkish invasion of Cyprus, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan opened the historic and controversial Hagia Sophia in Istanbul for Muslim Prayer. President Erdoğan’s timing in respect of the Hagia Sophia decision is viewed with suspicion by many Orthodox Greeks, other Christian communities and allies of the Greek and Greek-Cypriot position.

The decision came just ten days before the anniversary of the Turkish invasion of Cyprus and was followed a few weeks later by further exploratory drilling in Cypriot-claimed waters. The Hagia Sophia was once the home of and continues to be the symbol of Greek Christian Orthodoxy, which was converted into a mosque after the fall of Constantinople to the Ottoman Empire in 1453. The bold decision to open Hagia Sophia for public Muslim prayer, combined with Turkey’s increasingly confident moves in the Mediterranean is a provocative act. These provocations have serious implications for peace in the region and for the probability of any resolution of the Cyprus issue.

1974 invasion

Tensions between Turks and Greeks over Cyprus have been ongoing since the 1974 Turkish invasion. On July 15, 1974 Greek officers under the military junta ruling in Athens, performed a coup d’état, overthrowing the Cypriot President Makarios. For Turkey, the coup and subsequent imposing of Greek Nikos Sampson as President, signalled a possibility of enosis or ‘union’ with Greece and therefore as Turkey argues, a threat to the Turkish-Cypriot community.

On July 20 1974 Turkish forces began landing in Cyprus. By August of the same year, Turkey took 37% of the island. Under the guise of protecting Turkish-Cypriots from enosis, since 1974 Turkey has occupied the northern part of Cyprus. Around 160,000 Greek Cypriots fled from their homes seeking refuge in the South part of the island. Although active fighting has ceased tensions remain high with a UN peacekeeping mission present in high-risk areas and along the buffer zone. Provocation from either side carries the risk of waking a dormant volcano. 

Why recent events matter

Turkish drilling activities in the Eastern Mediterranean could have a damaging impact on the peace process in Cyprus.  Since 1974, no Greek, Cypriot or Turkish administration has managed to bring peace between the countries any closer. In 2004, the parties came close to a settlement that involved a “bi-zonal bi communal federal state”, however the Greek-Cypriot community ultimately rejected the settlement following a referendum. Since 2004, many talks have been held between the parties but the countries are no closer to a feasible and sustainable resolution of the problem.

The most recent Turkish drilling activities have grabbed attention from further afield, with France’s President Macron publicly condemning Turkey’s actions even deploying naval vessels to support Greece’s claims to the waters. France’s resolute response to Turkey’s actions demonstrates how quickly the scramble for energy resources in the region could escalate into full blown military conflict. By escalating tensions in the Eastern Mediterranean, Erdoğan not only tangibly increases the risk of military confrontation, but also sends a powerful symbolic message that Turkey has taken a diplomatic and peaceful resolution to the Cyprus question off the table.

Whereas Turkey’s actions in the Eastern Mediterranean are clearly risky from a regional security perspective, the Hagia Sophia decision is largely a symbolic and passive message of Turkish intentions. The rivalry between Greece, Greek-Cypriots and Turkey extends hundreds of years and stories of betrayal and war have been passed from generation to generation. Twinning this decision with Turkey’s activities in the Eastern Mediterranean is a clear message to Hellenic communities around the world that Turkey is reclaiming the spirit of the Ottoman Empire. For Greeks and Cypriots around the world, it is the ultimate insult to Greek Christian Orthodoxy and to Hellenic culture.

Where to from here

Both sides should remember that tied up in this centuries old rivalry, are internally and externally displaced people from both the Greek-Cypriot and Turkish-Cypriot communities who were uprooted from their homes in 1974. The reunification of once an ethnically diverse, but culturally cohesive and strong island should be a priority for the parties involved. Reckless displays of power will only serve to fuel animosity and decrease the probability of a peacefully unified Cyprus.