By: Sourishree Ghosh, Research Analyst, GSDN

Cyprus is located at the geographical juncture of Eurasia and Africa. It has an excellent geostrategic history and legacy of being the core of the world continent “Afro-Eurasia” wherein three civilisations meet. It is located in the sea lane of the great maritime highway which connects the Mediterranean Sea through the two gates namely the Suez Canal and Bab-el-Mandeb with the Indian Ocean. These are the Strait of Hormuz which leads to the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Malacca which connects to the Pacific. These choke points are crucial to the economic and national security of the world economies. The island country has been at the arena of rivalry between Eastern and Western Civilisation. The conflict for influence and control in this region among major powers such as the United States, Britain and Europe has led to instability and insecurity in the Cyprus region.

Recently, Egypt Foreign Sameh Shoukry and Cyprus Foreign Minister Constantinos Kombos agreed upon the importance of immediate Gaza ceasefire. This is a crucial development given the importance of Cyprus on the West Asian geographical and geopolitical landscape. In the ongoing Israel Palestine conflict, Turkey has taken a stance against Israel while Cyprus has chosen Israel. It is also one of the four countries that lie at the borders of the eastern Mediterranean and face the strategic issue of regional stability in the region as the region is always in turmoil, so many question whether there can be a strategic eastern Mediterranean alliance among Greece, Turkey, Cyprus and Israel. However, this is nearly impossible in the near future as only Israel and Turkey are cooperating on security terms and the relations among other members have not been very promising. Cyprus in its foreign policy has adopted a Third World-oriented foreign policy which accepted the Arab positions vis-a-vis Israel.

Cyprus has also developed into a well-established international business and investment centre in the Mediterranean and also a link between Europe and the Middle East which acts as a gateway to the markets of Europe and Middle East. It is also the point where different political entities establish themselves. The region has been in grave political turmoil which has posed a challenge to international order and stability. These include the tensions between Turkey and Iran, radical Islamist movements and ethnic conflicts such as the war in Afghanistan. On the other hand, there are the western-oriented states in the eastern Mediterranean region which have a long-term strategic interest in the region for maintenance of peace.

It has also developed into a European hub for investment as the EU membership allows its access to more than 30 EU countries. The island country is also an international shipping centre which is among the ten biggest commercial fleets in the world. Over 1800 ships have been registered under the Cypriot flag. It is home to major ports of Limassol and Larnaca which handles cargo and passenger traffic and has also participated in the regional trade initiatives such as the Eastern Mediterranean Energy Corridor. It plays a role of the bridge with regard to trade, business and investment between the European and the Middle Eastern countries. The recent discovery of the reserves of natural gas in the Exclusive Economic Zone of Cyprus which has indeed increased the importance of Cyprus.

The conflicting interests between Greece and Turkey (although both of them are members of NATO) has led to a stalemate in the peace process for the reunification of Cyprus. Athens and Ankara are the disputed territories wherein both the states claim their rights over the aerospace over the Aegean Sea and the seabed beneath it. NAM has also failed to bring recognition to Cyprus. The United Nations Peace Keeping Force in Cyprus has maintained the military status quo which has prevented the outbreak of serious hostilities; however, the peace process continues to be stalled. The Mediterranean Middle Eastern strategic importance has led to the involvement of the NATO and UN, and this region is in a continual state of “no-final settlement” which has not solidified into a balance of power for maintenance of the vested western interests. The European Union is aiming for maintenance of good relations with Turkey to make it a buffer for the West Asian region.   

The accession of Cyprus to the European Union (EU) in 2004 has led to the development of an extended outpost position in the Hinterland region which also projects the influence of the European Union. Geographically, it has made Cyprus the far eastern point of the European Union and also signifies the influence of the European Union in the Middle Eastern region and also into the coveted Persian Gulf region, which has a substantial amount of fossil fuel reserves. Though Cyprus mainly has a Greek population, it looks more towards Europe in its cultural and political taste.

Cyprus is an island nation in the eastern Mediterranean Sea which is not far from Israel, Syria, Turkey and Egypt. The island country is situated at the centre of a geopolitical chessboard which is intertwined in the threads of historical narrative, regional power dynamics, and international developments. Cyprus has also been conquered by many foreign powers from Greek and Romans to Byzantine and Ottoman rule. The country has also been a hotbed of territorial conflicts concerning sea borders. The discovery of the gas reserves have also made Cyprus less dependent on Russia, which played a major role in helping Cyprus out of the 2013 financial crisis. In 2022, a historic deal was signed between Lebanon and Israel for sharing the gas field along the maritime border. The Cyprus-based DEH Quantum Energy has also been working for the development of a submarine cable for connecting the power grids of Greece, Cyprus and Israel. The Eurasia Interconnector is the 2000 megawatt project which is also the world’s longest submarine power cable. Cyprus has also been making a lot of efforts for the development of a humanitarian corridor in Gaza.

Cyprus has also been at the forefront of the migration crisis. Cyprus also stands at the crossroads of the cultural, linguistic and historic crossroads between Europe and Asia. The division of Cyprus into two parts, namely the Greek controlled South and the Turkish controlled north has had far reaching geopolitical implications. The Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus has not gained recognition as a separate country. This division continues to play a crucial role in shaping the geopolitical dynamics of the region. This is the legacy of the 1974 war with Turkey, in which there was a ethnic cleansing process which led to the movement of the Muslim Cypriot Turks to the north while the Greek Orthodoxy Cypriots moved towards the south. It is an ironic fact that Turkey has occupied the land of Cyprus, which is an EU member and the fact that the former seeks to be integrated into the EU.

Cyprus is a rich source of regional energy discoveries with its substantial reserves of natural gas, and thus also a hotbed of maritime disputes among the regional powers namely Greece, Turkey and Cyprus itself. It is also at the shipping routes for oil. It is one of the potential chokepoints which has led to competition among European powers for control over these chokepoints. Cyprus geographically cannot be attacked by land as it is only accessible by air or water. The position of the island has also given it the shape of a huge military base and aircraft carrier with formidable fortifications. The island also has major OTH 9 (over the horizon limitations) radar installations in the Troodos Range, such as the Mount Olympus, the commercial seaports of Limassol and Larnaca, two military bases of Akrotiri and Dhekelia and the presence of a primary international standard airport in Larnaca, and these developments have furthered the geopolitical importance of Cyprus.   

Geopolitical Importance for India

In recent years, there has been a growing bilateral engagement between Cyprus and India as the two countries have a number of strategic convergences on the issues in their respective neighbourhoods, the Indo-Pacific region, West Asia and on Europe. Moreover, Greece also aspires to become a gateway of India to Europe in the arenas of trade and investment under the Greece 2.0 Masterplan. There are many areas of strategic convergence between India and Greece in the sectors of security and defence such as joint participation in the exercise such as Iniohos 23 and Tarang Shakti. India’s support for the non-permanent candidacy for Greece for the year 2025-26 is of paramount importance for the latter. It also appreciates India’s long-standing position on the Cyprus issue. India supports the creation of a Bi-Communal, Bi-Zonal federation based on the UN Resolution.  Greece also welcomes India’s Indo-Pacific Initiative. (IPOI). India and Cyprus also recently signed an MoU on defence and military cooperation, which also reflects the growing importance of Cyprus for India.

The India-Middle East Europe Corridor (IMEC) is a promising development for Cyprus as well as for India. The island has a strategic role to play in the development of the corridor given its strategic geographical location in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea, which serves as the crucial hub linking Europe, Asia and Africa. Cyprus is a part of the IMEC initiative which aims at exploration of the energy exports such as natural gas, electricity and hydrogen, which aligns with Cyprus aims for a diversified and sustainable energy portfolio.

One of the factors which has been given importance in the National Strategy on Cyprus Diaspora 2023-28 is the Cyprus Diaspora. The Cyprus Diaspora is estimated to be 0.8 million strong, which also enhances the geopolitical importance of the country in the form of knowledge transfer to their native industries, investment, promotion of the art and culture of Cyprus and remittances. This could also be a potential political tool for furthering the interests of Cyprus in the global geopolitical space. The end of Greek-Turkish tensions over the Cyprus issue would be beneficial in the long term for the growth and development in the region. A Cyprus stalemate would lead to extension of the influence of the EU in the eastern Mediterranean region. It would also weaken the Islamist and ultra-nationalist elements in the domestic politics of Turkey. This would also reduce the prospects of a development of an extremist Islamist state on the north of Cyprus, which is one of Iran’s strategic foreign policies.  To conclude, the geographical factors such as topography, size, location, climate and availability of the natural resource have shaped the political history, influence and importance of Cyprus in the geopolitical chessboard of global politics.