UNSC to meet over Cyprus peacekeeping mission
The UNSC (United Nations Security Council) will hold a meeting regarding the status of the peacekeeping mission in Cyprus today.
The island has been divided into two entities since the Turkish invasion of Cyprus in 1974: the Greek-aligned and internationally recognized Republic of Cyprus in the south and Pro-Turkish Northern Cyprus. UN peacekeeping troops occupy the border between the two entities to quell tensions between the Greek and Turkish Cypriot communities. The island is mostly peaceful but still experiences occasional acts of violence such as the attack against a UN patrol vehicle by unknown assailants in May this year.
The situation in Cyprus is largely a reflection of the relations between Greece, the European Union and Turkey. While EU-Turkey relations remain frosty, geopolitical considerations due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine have largely sidelined existing disputes—the majority of EU member states alongside Turkey are NATO members. At the same time, a permanent settlement to the division of Cyprus is unlikely outside of the very long term—while the status quo is undesirable to either side, it has kept tensions cool while both sides are largely focused on other concerns.
Download the Daily Brief app to stay ahead of geopolitics with daily, short, forward-looking analysis of geopolitical events before they hit the headlines.
