The USS Arleigh Burke and USS Roosevelt, both guided missile destroyers, docked at Limassol Port on Saturday.
The TRNC Foreign Ministry pointed out that this deployment follows the U.S. lifting its arms embargo on southern Cyprus two years ago, and warned that continued U.S. military support is escalating regional instability.
In light of recent military activity in the south and amid the fighting between the Israelis and the Palestinians, President Ersin Tatar accused the Greek Cypriot administration of risking the island’s stability by serving as a base for Western interests. This follows concerns about British and U.S. bases on the island supporting Israel’s actions in Gaza.
Turkey has also expressed disapproval of Greek Cypriot plans to build a naval base in collaboration with Greece, with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan stating that Turkey may respond by constructing its own maritime facilities in Northern Cyprus if needed. Erdoğan emphasised the importance of avoiding actions that escalate tensions and criticised any complicity in conflicts outside Cyprus.
