Nicosia, Cyprus. The Cyprus government said it plans to report what it described as interference with communications between air traffic control and aircraft carrying ministers from Greece, France, and the Netherlands as the flights approached Cyprus. Presidential press office director Victor Papadopoulos said the matter would be raised through appropriate channels.
Government response
Papadopoulos said the Republic of Cyprus would report the incident “competently where appropriate”. He added that Defence Minister Vasilis Palmas would inform European Union foreign affairs chief Kaja Kallas and his European counterparts during Monday’s summit of EU defence ministers in Nicosia.
Papadopoulos said the governments of France, Greece, and the Netherlands had informed Cyprus of the alleged interference. He also said Turkish fighter jets were present in the area as the aircraft transporting Greek Defence Minister Nikos Dendias approached the island.
Question over possible link
Asked whether the alleged incident could be linked to the government’s signing of a status of forces agreement with France, which will allow French troops to be stationed on the island, Papadopoulos said only that it was “an illegal action outside international law, which is condemnable”.
Turkish Cypriot response
Turkish Cypriot air traffic controllers’ trade union leader Kursad Hudaverdioglu told the Cyprus Mail earlier that the allegation was “a completely politically motivated, misrepresentation of a news story” and said “the matter has nothing to do with harassment”.
Regarding the accusation that fighter jets had been present in the area as Dendias’ aircraft approached the island, Hudaverdioglu said the jets “took off due to an emergency”, and that “they flew to the north of the island without violating any borders from the moment they took off”.
Military deployments
A total of six F-16 fighter jets have been stationed at Ercan airport since March, after Cyprus was hit by an Iranian-made drone. Those fighter jets were later joined by Hisar-A surface-to-air missiles.
Shortly after their deployment, Greek government spokesman Pavlos Marinakis questioned the legality of the move, saying it is “prohibited” for Turkey to use the aircraft for “offensive actions outside the country”.
He said at the time that “the invasion and occupation of the northern part of Cyprus is illegal and does not legitimise any presence of a military force on the island. The F-16s, in fact, are prohibited from being used for offensive actions outside the country by the US supply contract.”
Greece had also deployed four F-16s to Paphos in March, and foreign ministry spokeswoman Lana Zochiou said at the time that the deployment was “purely defensive in nature”.