North Cyprus News – Everyone Wants a Piece

North Cyprus News – Everyone Wants a PieceI find that one topic always appearing in the North Cyprus News media as well as in the south is how one or other country wants to come to the island’s rescue. Although, historically, these were Greece and Turkey, and we all know what happened then, more recently Russia has joined the queue and several other countries are beginning to show interest. Now, to my mind, this is the problem.

The argument has always been that, with only a million inhabitants, Cyprus is too small to go it alone. That has certainly been true for other small countries but along with this association with more powerful allies comes the danger of their wanting a piece of the country itself.

To quote the character playing Hitler in the Mel Brooks film ‘Springtime For Hitler’, he only wanted peace: ‘a little piece of Poland, a little piece of France.’

Recent history is full of powerful nations absorbing smaller countries, piece by piece. To simplify the current situation, Cyprus could well involve a stand off between Turkey and Russia. On one side we have Turkey with a leader who says he wants the same powers as Hitler, according to newspapers such as the Independent. Others, including the Financial Times, are saying that Erdogan wants to revive the Ottoman Empire.

Russia, on the other hand, have already shown their desire to recover their lost republic and, compounded with the fury resulting from Turkey downing of one of their jets, Cyprus could well be the scene of some sort of battle between the two.

The United States learnt from the fall of the British Empire that an easier way of taking over a country is not through force but through money. Both Russia and Turkey have also learnt that lesson. Turkey is doubtlessly the paymaster of the north but Russia has invested far less in the south; but that could change.

Sometime this year the Cyprus problem will achieve a solution. Either the country will join in some form or it will stay divided forever. Both ‘solutions’ bring problems but a divided Cyprus brings the most worrying. These are interesting times.

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