The last three of six Turkish warplanes sent to Cyprus on Thursday in retaliation for a similar Greek move left the Mediterranean island yesterday. The six F-16 fighters landed at an air base at Lefkoniko, northern Cyprus, two days after four Greek air force F-16s flew into a newly-opened military airstrip at Paphos, in the Greek-Cypriot part of the island. Three of the Turkish planes had returned to their base near Ankara on Thursday.
The Greek and Turkish moves have escalated tensions on the divided island, with the US criticising the two Aegean neighbours. The US Defence Department said the US aircraft carrier Eisenhower and its battle group would arrive in the Mediterranean today on a previously-scheduled tour.
The newly-appointed US ambassador to the UN and special envoy for Cyprus, Mr Richard Holbrooke, will visit Greece on Monday, according to a Greek government spokesman. He will be accompanied by the State Department special co-ordinator for Cyprus, Mr Thomas Miller.
Mr Holbrooke visited Cyprus recently in an unsuccessful effort to get the Greek-Cypriot and Turkish-Cypriot communities to negotiate. He said on Thursday he was pessimistic.
The latest Cyprus unrest comes amid continuing Turkish naval exercises in the eastern Mediterranean and the Aegean Sea. Part of the manoeuvres, which began on June 3th and are due to end next Friday, will be held in the north of the Aegean Sea, near the Turkish-Greek land border, the Istanbul daily Milliyet said.
Tensions between Greek-Cypriots and Turkish-Cypriots over the Paphos base have been high since it was inaugurated in January, prompting Turkey to briefly put its 35,000 troops in northern Cyprus on alert. Turkey has also threatened military action if the Cypriot authorities deploy Russian-built missiles later this year.
Turkey accused the EU yesterday of encouraging confrontation between Ankara and Athens by siding with Greece. "The EU has major responsibilities," President Suleyman Demirel said. "If it continues to encourage Greece with regard to certain disputes with Turkey, it will only cause confrontations between Turkey and Greece."
Greece has sought to play down the chances of a clash with Turkey, describing the presence of the Turkish fighters on the island as "grandstanding".