Cyprus Dispute

The Cyprus Dispute is a conflict between Greece and Turkey over Cyprus, an island nation in the eastern Mediterranean Sea.

Since the arrival of the British on the island of Cyprus, the "Cyprus Dispute" was identified as the conflict between the people of Cyprus and the United Kingdom as a colonial ruler. The core of the dispute was the Cypriots' demand for self determination. Britain shifted the "Cyprus Dispute" from a colonial dispute to a dispute between Turks and Greeks although Britain had denounced the agreement between itself and Turkey over Cyprus, and declared Cyprus as a British colony. Today, the problem has involved Turkey, Greece, the United Kingdom, the United States, the United Nations and the European Union.

In the 1974 Turkey invaded Cyprus and 37% of the island ended up under Turkish military occupation. Later the Turkish Cypriot community declared its independence as the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. The United Nations buffer zone which cuts across the country has created a physical and social barrier between the Greek and Turkish Cypriot communities and also separates the government-controlled south from the Turkish military-occupied north, which has been condemned by UN Security Council Resolutions as legally invalid. Currently it is recognised only by Turkey.