US boosts security ties with Cyprus

PHOTO CAPTION: Illustrative photo — Cypriot Army Special Forces soldiers move through a house during a simulated raid with members of U.S. Naval Special Warfare Task Unit Europe (NSWTU-E) in Cyprus, September 28, 2021. (U.S. Army Photo by Sgt. Patrik Orcutt via U.S. Defense Visual Information Distribution Service)

By Kanishka Singh

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -     Democratic U.S. President Joe Biden boosted security ties with Cyprus on Wednesday by issuing a presidential memorandum that makes the eastern Mediterranean island eligible to receive American defense articles and military sales.

WHY IT'S IMPORTANT

Relations between the U.S. and Cyprus have become closer in recent years, as the island has firmly pivoted its focus to the West.

Their strengthening relationship is being watched closely by Turkey, which is a NATO ally of Washington and in September criticized the signing of a roadmap to boost two-way defense cooperation between the United States and Cyprus. Turkey said the roadmap was detrimental to the interests of Turkish Cypriots in the breakaway north of the island.

KEY QUOTE

"I hereby find that the furnishing of defense articles and defense services to the Republic of Cyprus will strengthen the security of the United States and promote world peace," Biden, who leaves office on Jan. 20 when Republican President-elect Donald Trump takes over, said in the memorandum.

CONTEXT

The United States and Cyprus had agreed to boost cooperation in late October, amid a backdrop of increasing turmoil in the neighboring Middle East.

A strategic dialogue, which the two countries agreed upon in June 2024, encompassed a range of topics from security and law enforcement to energy cooperation, education and investment.

 (Reporting by Kanishka Singh in Washington; Editing by Nia Williams)