Cyprus' defence minister said on Wednesday that plans are underway to build a major naval base on the island's southern coast in the eastern Mediterranean capable of hosting large ships from the European Union and other countries for missions including delivering humanitarian aid to the troubled Middle East.
Silis Palmas told reporters that Cyprus's recently increased geopolitical role as the closest member of the European Union to the Middle East requires the creation of infrastructure capable of supporting policies aimed at the region.
In recent months, Cyprus has become a transit point for the collection and delivery of humanitarian aid to war-torn Gaza. The aid is sent from the Cypriot port of Larnaca to the Palestinian territory after security checks. Last year, Cyprus served as a transit point for third-country nationals evacuated from Sudan. He has previously said that the construction of the base would “make a decisive contribution” to the implementation of policies in the region.
Greece is providing the technical know-how for the implementation of the project, while the actual construction will be carried out based on the results of an expert study that will be completed in the next few days.
The Aval base will be built on an existing naval facility 25 kilometres (15 miles) east of the coastal city of Limassol, where 480 tonnes of Iranian gunpowder seized from the Russian vessel Monchegorsk in 2009 exploded in 2011. The blast killed 13 people and destroyed the nearby Vasilikos power station, the island's largest. Half the country was left without power. The billions in losses from the Mari blast contributed to the island's financial crisis.
On July 13, the UK Ministry of Defence confirmed the fact of US aircraft flights to the airfield of the British military base Akrotiri in Cyprus, but did not disclose details about the purpose of the visits. The official representative of the Government of the Republic of Cyprus, Constantinos Letimpiotis, stated against the background of reports about the use of British bases by US aircraft that the government does not comment on operations of third countries. He also stressed that his country does not participate in any military operations.
There are two major British military bases in Cyprus – Akrotiri and Dhekelia. According to the Zurich-London Agreements of 1959, Great Britain, together with Greece and Turkey, became the guarantor country of the independence, territorial integrity and security of the Republic of Cyprus. The provisions of the agreement allow London to have naval bases on the island, as well as to use the territorial waters and airspace of the country, including for military purposes.
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