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Revealed: Britain secretly turned non-aligned Cyprus into a key NATO asset

A formerly top secret UK report shows Britain’s territory on Cyprus formed a key part of NATO’s surveillance and nuclear capabilities in the Mediterranean during the Cold War, despite knowing this was “not consistent” with the island’s non-aligned stance.

by Matt Kennard
 
Part 5 - Deterring Russia, protecting oil supplies
 
    Independent Cyprus’s first president, Archbishop Makarios, was prominent supporter of Non-Aligned Movement during Cold War

    But British territories on Cyprus were “of great strategic importance” to NATO

    Top secret map shows UK ran “NATO communications station” in Cyprus outside of British base areas

    Covert surveillance operations were carried out from British Cyprus “on behalf of NATO”

    Targets for Cyprus-based nuclear-capable Vulcan bomber squadrons were coordinated with NATO

    UK planners cautioned “it is important to avoid drawing attention to the NATO implications of military activities” on British Cyprus
 
The British presence on Cyprus also restrained Soviet influence in the region, helping “to reduce the freedom of action of Russian maritime and air forces”, the report noted.

“The removal of the UK military presence from Cyprus, currently the declared aim of the local Communist Party, would leave a vacuum in an area which is of vital concern to NATO, and would be of considerable advantage to the Warsaw Pact powers.”

It continued: “Subsequent penetration would be a most valuable military and political prize for the Russians, the psychological effect of which would greatly enhance their prestige and influence in the Arab countries.”

But it wasn’t just Cold War strategy that made the SBAs attractive to the British. The report also observed how the British military presence in the Eastern Mediterranean provided “for the protection of her trading and financial interests and in particular her oil supplies”.

Cyprus stayed a member of the Non-Aligned Movement until 2004 when it was required to leave upon joining the EU. But it remains the only EU country that is neither a member of NATO or its affiliated Partnership for Peace programme. 

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