ABSTRACT
Turkey’s Cyprus policy centres on two priorities: national security interests and protection of Turkish Cypriots. Until the rise of Recep Erdoğan to power, balancing these two goals went hand-in-hand with NATO’s regional interests. However, under Erdoğan’s leadership, Turkey’s Cyprus policy no longer conforms with her traditional allies’ priorities. Today, Erdoğan promotes gradual Islamisation of north Cyprus with an eye on unification with Turkey if peace talks fail. A second related policy targets securing strategic control of exclusive economic zone in the Eastern Mediterranean. Both policies could result in catastrophic developments in the region.
