50 years since the coup in Cyprus

A Greek tank in the streets of Nicosia on July 15, 1974
Photo: Greek Reporter

This year marks 50 years since the coup in Cyprus on July 15, 1974 and the Turkish invasion that followed on July 20 of the same year. It is a twin crime against the people of Cyprus behind which were NATO, the Americans and the British. Because the coup and the Turkish invasion come as a continuation of the dictatorship that was imposed on Greece in 1967 and which the Americans and NATO were behind once again, writes Stephanos Constantinides, a professor of political science and history at Laval University, the University of Montreal and the University of Quebec at Montreal.

After all, one of the reasons that the dictatorship was imposed on Greece was to close the Cyprus problem that the Americans had been trying to close since 1964, without succeeding, with the double union, based on the Acheson plan. Essentially, the Acheson Plan, named after the former US Secretary of State Dean Acheson, envisaged giving Turkey the part of Cyprus it occupied in 1974.

The political anomaly in Greece began in July 1965 with the overthrow of the democratic government of George Papandreou by the Americans and the Palace. The overthrow aimed to impose a dichotomous solution of the Cyprus issue and was made possible by a defection led by Konstantinos Mitsotakis, who with other Centre Union deputies (the ‘July apostates’), defected from Papandreou’s party and joined the pro-monarchist forces  causing political chaos. When that failed, the dictatorship was imposed with the same solution in mind.

The first period of the George Papadopoulos dictatorship failed for various reasons to impose the solution that the Americans and NATO wanted in the Cyprus problem. It was then that the Americans proceeded to overthrow Papadopoulos and impose the dictatorship of Dimitris Ioannidis who himself did not appear but acted as an invisible dictator. Ioannidis and the country’s military leadership at the time helped create EOKA B, an organization that undermined the legitimate government of Cyprus and then proceeded with the coup of July 15, 1974 that led to the Turkish invasion and occupation (until today) of  37% of the territory of the Republic of Cyprus by Turkey.

Today we know from the American and British documents made public as well as from a series of other testimonies that Ioannidis carried out the coup in Cyprus in consultation with the Americans and in particular the CIA. We know that the American plan of this period envisaged the Turkish invasion and the occupation by Turkey of the territory of the Republic of Cyprus which it holds to this day. For this reason there was no substantial resistance in the first stage of the Turkish invasion. Furthermore, when their goal was achieved, the Americans sidelined Ioannidis and Henry Kissinger announced from Washington the political change that took place in Athens with the collapse of the dictatorship and the return of Constantinos Karamanlis 48 hours before it happened.

Then the Americans prevented Greece and especially Karamanlis from any intervention in Cyprus after the second Turkish invasion of August 1974 which completed the occupation of almost 37% of the Cypriot territory. The interest of the Americans at that time was how to prevent a Greek-Turkish war and the disintegration of the south-eastern wing of NATO. And they succeeded since Karamanlis in his speech after the second Turkish invasion said the infamous “Cyprus lies far away”.

US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger with President of Cyprus Makarios.
Photo: Greek Reporter

…It should be recalled that 50 years ago the so-called "black colonels" regime seized power in Greece. It was a military coup. It was the policy of the "black colonels" that led to Greek aggression against the legitimate government of Cyprus and to the resignation of the President of Cyprus Makarios, which, as a result, provoked the Turkish invasion from the North.

Therefore, it is necessary to remember who started the Cypriot adventure, which led the island republic to be divided into Greek and Turkish parts to this day.

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