Cyprus: an island state located at the heart of the geopolitical turbulence of the 21st century

1. The importance of Cyprus in the Eastern Mediterranean
2. Rivalry with Turkey
3. Links with Arab countries
4. Turkish occupation

In the heart of the Eastern Mediterraneanwhere Europe rubs shoulders with the Middle East and where sea ​​routes connect the Suez Canal to the European coasts, the small Island of Cyprus regained a geopolitical centrality which seemed reserved only for the great powers.

For centuries, Phoenicians, Persians, Romans, Byzantines, Venetians, Ottomans and British understood the strategic value of this territory located facing the coasts of Syria, Lebanon and Turkey. Today, in the middle of the 21st century, this ancestral status of a decisive enclave has taken on a new dimension marked by the energy rivalry, military tensions and the struggle for political control of the Eastern Mediterranean.

The importance of Cyprus in the Eastern Mediterranean

The Republic of Cyprusmember of the European Union since 2004, remains the only European state partially occupied by foreign forces. From the Turkish military intervention of 1974, the north of the island – which represents 36% of its territory – remains under the control of Ankara and the “Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus” self-proclaimed, recognized only by Turkey. This territorial divide not only conditions Cypriot domestic policy, but it has also become one of the sources of tensionThe most persistent disputes are between Greece and Turkey, two nominal allies within NATO who have deep strategic, historical and maritime differences.

The island, located a little more than a hundred kilometers from the coast Syrian and Turkish, constitutes a fundamental element to understand l’architecture de sécurité of the Eastern Mediterranean. Its geographical position makes it a bridge between Europe, Asia and Africa, but also a military and energy platform of inestimable value. It is no coincidence that the United Kingdom has retained on Cypriot territory the sovereign bases of Akrotiri and Dhekelia, considered essential for British and Western operations in the Middle East. It’s not a coincidence eitheri the European Union is watching with interest increasing the stability of the island in a context marked by the war in Ukraine, energy insecurity and regional competition.

The strategic importance of Cyprus has particularly increased since the discovery of significant gas deposits natural in the seabed of the Eastern Mediterranean. The reserves detected off the coasts of Israel, Egypt and Cyprus itself have profoundly upset the regional balance and opened up the possibility of making this region a energy alternative for Europe facing dependence on Russian gas.

In Cypriot watersthe discovery of the Aphrodite deposit and the exploration of new maritime blocks have aroused the interest of large international companies and reinforced Nicosia’s conviction that the country could become a leading energy player. However, these discoveries have also multiplied tensions with Turkey, which rejects the maritime agreements signed by Cyprus with Egypt, Israel and Greece and considers that both the Turkish Cypriot community and Ankara hold rights to part of these resources.

For years, Turkish survey ships accompanied by military units operated in maritime areas claimed by the Republic of Cyprus, causing recurring diplomatic crises with the European Union. Nicosia denounced these drillings as violations of its sovereignty and obtained from Brussels the adoption of sanctions against those responsible for explorations deemed illegal. The energy conflict has thus become part of a much broader dispute linked to the control of exclusive economic zones and the redefinition of power in the Eastern Mediterranean.

Rivalry with Turkey

Behind this confrontation lies the historic rivalry between Greece and Turkey, marked by decades of mutual distrust, territorial disputes and traumatic memories. For Athens, the Turkish military presence in northern Cyprus constitutes an unacceptable occupation which threat to regional stability. For Ankara, on the other hand, the intervention of 1974 was a necessary response to the coup d’état orchestrated by sectors favorable to the union of the island with Greece. Since then, the Cyprus conflict has become the extension of strategic rivalry between the two powers of the Aegean Sea.

Tensions are not limited only to Cyprus. They also include maritime boundaries in the Aegean Sea, control of airspace and disputes over hydrocarbon-rich continental shelves. In this complex context, Cyprus occupies a crucial place because it allows project military and energetic influence to the Middle East and North Africa.Â

In recent years, Nicosia has responded to Turkish pressure by strengthening a network of regional alliances which redefines the political map of the Eastern Mediterranean. Trilateral cooperation between Cyprus, Greece and Israel has become one of the most significant strategic phenomena in the region. The three countries share common interests related to maritime security, energy exploitation and the containment of Turkish expansion.

The connection between Cyprus and Israel is particularly revealing of contemporary geopolitical transformations. For decades, Israel maintained close strategic cooperation with Turkey. However, the deterioration of relations between Ankara and Tel Aviv has pushed Israel to seek new regional partners. Cyprus then appeared as a natural ally because of its geographic proximity, its political affinities and its energetic convergences.

Joint military maneuvers, technological cooperation agreements and projects related to gas transportation have consolidated an increasingly close relationship between the two countries. EastMed, carried out jointly with Greece, symbolized this new strategic architecture intended to transport gas from the Eastern Mediterranean to Europe without passing through Turkish territory. Although economic and technical difficulties have slowed its development, the project retains a strong geopolitical charge because it embodies the desire to create an alternative energy axis in the region.

Greece, for its part, considers Cyprus as a essential element of its strategy Mediterranean. Military and diplomatic cooperation between Athens and Nicosia has intensified in a sustained manner in the face of the common perception of a Türkiye increasingly assertive under the direction of Recep Tayyip ErdoÄŸan. The presence of Turkish troops in the north of the island, estimated at several tens of thousands of men, continues to be considered by the Cypriot government as the main threat for its national security

Links with Arab countries

At the same time, Cyprus has developed growing ties with Egypt and several moderate Arab countries, seeking to establish themselves as a diplomatic bridge between the European Union and the Middle East. The Cypriot president himself, Nikos Christodoulides, insisted on presenting the island not only as a country marked by Turkish occupation, but also as a regional actor capable of playing an important role in Mediterranean stability and in relations between Europe and the Arab world.

The war in Gaza and growing regional instability further strengthened the strategic importance of Cyprus. Its proximity to Israel and Lebanon has made the island a essential logistics center for evacuations, humanitarian operations and diplomatic coordination. The European Union began to consider Cyprus not only as a small peripheral state, but also as a an essential platform for outreach European in the Middle East.

Turkish occupation

At the same time, the island tries to avoid the question of occupation does not completely monopolize its international image. For years, Cypriot diplomacy focused almost exclusively on denouncing the Turkish presence and seeking international support for reunification. Today, without renouncing this claim, Nicosia aspires to present itself as a modern, dynamic and strategic player within European architecture.

However, the conflict remains deeply rooted. The Green Line that divides Nicosia remains one of the most visible symbols of contemporary European fragmentation. Patrolled by United Nations forces for decades, this demilitarized strip serves as a daily reminder that the Greek-Turkish confrontation in the Mediterranean basin never really ended in Cyprus. The enormous flag of the self-proclaimed Turkish-Cypriot Republic, visible from the capital, constitutes, for many Greek Cypriots, a permanent expression of the occupation.Â

The reunification negotiations carried out under the aegis of the United Nations have experienced successive failures. The so-called Crans-Montana process, considered for a time as luck the most serious of upstartsr to a final agreement, ended in a lack of concrete results. The growing mistrust between the parties, the divergences on the institutional model and the question of guarantees Turkish military forces continue to block any stable solution.

Despite this, Cyprus retains a economic and political stability remarkable compared to much of the region. Its membership of the European Union, the development of the financial sector, tourism and the prospects of energy exploitation have contributed to strengthening its international position. Moreover, the island succeeded in establishing itself as an important center of services and trade between Europe and the Middle East.Â

In an era marked by the return of rivalry between the great powers and by the increasing militarization of energy supply routes, Cyprus once again occupies a place disproportionate to its size, which nevertheless ranks it as the third largest island in the Mediterranean after Sicily and Sardinia. The island represents both a fEuropean border, a Western military platform, a potential energy node and a theater where the ambitions of the Türkiye, Greece, Israel and great international powers.

The history of Cyprus demonstrates thathe Eastern Mediterranean remains one of the spaces the most sensitive on the planet. Where continents, religions, energy interests and imperial memories intersect, geography continues to condition politics. And few nations embody this reality better than this ask him to divide située au cÅ“ur même des turbulences géopolitics du XXIe siècle.Â