Northern Cyprus slams Greek Cypriot side for arms program

The Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) criticized on Friday the arms program started by the Greek Cypriot administration.

Underlining that the Greek Cypriot administration had been carrying out the program for some time, despite knowing that it would cause tension, a Foreign Ministry statement said it was clear that the Greek Cypriot side had increased its military alliances against the TRNC, and that it is purchasing drones and heavy weapons.

"The Greek Cypriot administration's continued armament and provocative activities to threaten our country serve no other purpose than to escalate tensions on the island and the region," it said.

It is important for the countries concerned to put an end to their approach that supports the armament policy of the Greek Cypriot side to preserve the safety and peace of the island and the region, it added.

Noting that the TRNC made constructive suggestions and tried opening the way for dialogue and cooperation, it said: "As long as the Greek Cypriot Administration continues its armament activities, it is obvious that the TRNC will not hesitate to take the necessary measures together with the Republic of Turkey. The importance of Turkey's effective and actual guarantee is understood once again in the face of the Greek Cypriot side's armament activities."

Cyprus has been mired in a decades-long dispute between Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots, despite a series of diplomatic efforts by the UN to achieve a comprehensive settlement.

Ethnic attacks starting in early 1960s forced Turkish Cypriots to withdraw into enclaves for their safety.

In 1974, a Greek Cypriot coup aiming at Greece's annexation led to Turkey's military intervention as a guarantor power to protect Turkish Cypriots from persecution and violence. The TRNC was founded in 1983.

It has seen an on-and-off peace process in recent years, including a failed 2017 initiative in Switzerland under the auspices of guarantor countries Turkey, Greece, and the UK.

The Greek Cypriot administration entered the EU in 2004, the same year that Greek Cypriots thwarted the UN's Annan plan to end the decades-long dispute.