Türkiye has condemned a defence agreement signed this week between France and Southern Cyprus, describing it as a threat to regional stability and the rights of Turkish Cypriots.
In a strongly worded statement on Thursday, the Turkish Defence Ministry said the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) violates international law and existing treaties relating to the divided island.
“The agreement in question is contrary to international law and the treaties concerning Cyprus,” ministry sources said at a weekly press briefing.
They also warned that the Turkish military has both the “capability and determination” to protect the security of Turkish Cypriots against any perceived threat.
“Our armed forces have the power to give the harshest response to hostile attitudes and actions that threaten the security of the Turkish Cypriot people,” the ministry said.
Signed in Nicosia earlier this week, the deal provides for enhanced cooperation between French and Greek Cypriot military forces and allows for the presence of French personnel on the island.
The ministry’s criticism comes amid heightened regional tensions over energy resources, maritime jurisdiction and military partnerships involving Greece, Cyprus, France and other European countries.
Cyprus has remained divided since 1974, when a coup by Greek Cypriot nationalists seeking union with Greece prompted Türkiye to launch a military intervention on the island as a guarantor power under the 1960 Treaty of Guarantee.
The intervention led to the establishment of a Turkish Cypriot administration in the north of the island and the declaration of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus - recognised only by Ankara - in 1983.
Successive rounds of U.N.-backed talks have failed to achieve the island’s reunification.
In recent years, competing claims over offshore energy resources and maritime boundaries in the Eastern Mediterranean have created additional tensions.
Ankara has repeatedly said that any arrangements affecting Cyprus must take into account the rights and interests of Turkish Cypriots, as well as the broader security balance on the divided island.
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