War and peace: How Türkiye’s military intervention led to founding of TRNC

On July 20, nearly five decades ago, elite Turkish paratroopers backed by tanks and fighter jets landed on the Cyprus island's north in one of the biggest and most significant military interventions by modern Türkiye.

Titled Cyprus Peace Operation, the precise and swift military action of 1974 was aimed at protecting Turkish Cypriots facing religious and ethnic cleansing by a section of radical Greek Cypriots.

When the operation ended about a month later, the seeds of a new country were planted. In 1983, the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) was formed, and it commemorates the historic occasion by celebrating July 20 every year as Peace and Freedom Day.

This Thursday, on the 49th anniversary of the Cyprus Peace Operation, Türkiye’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan attended the commemoration ceremony at TRNC’s capital Lefkosa.

The importance of TRNC for Ankara could be gauged from the fact that successive leaders have made the island country their first official port of call after every election victory. President Erdogan visited TRNC in June this year, shortly after his historic re-election.

The 1974 operation not only saved Turkish Cypriots from mass extermination but also thwarted the annexation of Cyprus by Greece, preserving the island’s bi-communal independence.

The Republic of Cyprus, established on August 16, 1960, was intended to be based on the equality of two communities. Initially, both Türkiye and Turkish Cypriots welcomed this republic.

However, tensions escalated when Greek Cypriot President Archbishop Makarios suggested that the republic was merely a stepping stone toward ‘enosis’ – union with Greece.

Akritas Plan of 1963 and EOKA terror

Grounded in the idea of ‘enosis’, Greek Cypriots launched the Akritas Plan on December 21, 1963, aiming to eradicate Turkish Cypriots and gain complete control of the island within 48 hours.

Having the same goal of uniting Cyprus with Greece, The EOKA, a terrorist organisation founded in 1954, was responsible for a series of attacks on Cypriot Turks between 1957 and 1974.

The infamous Bloody Christmas massacre, also known as Black Christmas, of 1963 claimed the lives of over 370 Turkish Cypriots and displaced tens of thousands.

During this reign of terror, 109 Turkish villages were forcibly evacuated, and more than 2,500 Turkish houses suffered severe damage or were demolished.

Despite Türkiye, a guarantor country, urging the UN and the international community to take action for 11 years, there was very little progress.

Following a coup on July 15, 1974, the Greek junta removed President Makarios from power, prompting Türkiye to initiate negotiations with Greece and the UK.

Turkish military intervention

As the negotiations failed, Türkiye stepped on the island in the early hours of July 20 and called for restoring the constitutional order.

The Turkish military operation effectively prevented the annexation of Cyprus and provided much-needed protection to Turkish Cypriots who had suffered at the hands of radical Greek Cypriots.

Turkish paratroopers were deployed across the island while fighter jets patrolled the skies.

In response to the UN Security Council's call, Türkiye halted its operation and agreed to a ceasefire with Greece.

The peace operation led to the collapse of the Greek junta government, paving the way for peace talks in Geneva.

Founding of TRNC

Following the peace talks and Türkiye’s involvement to be the guarantor to protect Turkish Cypriots from persecution and violence, the TRNC was founded in 1983.

However, even after four decades, the international community deliberately refrains from recognising the state. Presently, Türkiye is the only country to officially recognise Northern Cyprus and maintains a military presence on the island to ensure the security of Turkish Cypriots.

The Cyprus issue is a longstanding political conflict between Turkish and Greek Cypriots, two distinct ethnic and religious communities residing on the strategically important Eastern Mediterranean island.

After decades of political deadlock over the island's status, Turkish Cypriots no longer believe in a unified, one-state solution advocated by the international community since the formation of the Republic of Cyprus in 1960.

The Turkish side supports a solution based on equal sovereignty for the two states on the island, whereas the Greek side favours an unequal federal solution with Greek dominance.

Progress of peace negotiations

Peace negotiations have witnessed intermittent progress in recent years, including failed twin referendums in 2004 and an unsuccessful 2017 initiative in Switzerland, facilitated by guarantor countries Türkiye, Greece, and the United Kingdom.

In February of this year, the first face-to-face meeting between Greek Cypriot leader Nikos Christodoulides and Turkish Cypriot President Ersin Tatar took place under the auspices of the UN.

Encouraged by this positive development, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for improved relations between Greece and Türkiye and urged the leaders in Cyprus to re-engage in talks to progress on this long-standing issue.

However, challenges persist regarding drilling rights in the Eastern Mediterranean.

The Greek Cypriot administration continues to violate the rights of TRNC and Türkiye by unilaterally declaring Exclusive Economic Zones around the island and granting licenses to international energy companies, further exacerbating tensions in the region.