The United States relationship with Turkey is complicated, US Ambassador in Nicosia Judith Garber ha said, noting that “it is important to continue to engage with Turkey in a way that keeps Turkey anchored to the West.”

In statements during an event for the media at the US Embassy, on the occasion of the US Independence Day, Garber elaborated on the fact that US-Cyprus relations have been further strengthened during the last year, focusing on security cooperation, and stressed the prospects for enhancing the economic cooperation between the two countries.

Asked about Turkey’s activities in Cyprus’ Exclusive Economic Zone, she recalled that the US has been very clear in its support for the Republic of Cyprus to develop national resources in its EEZ. 

Garber told the media that she is really proud “f what we’ve been able to do to strengthen the US – Republic of Cyprus partnership over the past year and excited about what we have to do going forward.”

She noted that “in the security area we really strengthened cooperation. We now have a defence attaché (of Cyprus) in Washington, we had a number of crisis response exercises,” she noted, adding that that US military cooperated with the Cyprus National Guard, that there were more navy ship visits and some US military officials came to Cyprus to meet with their counterparts.
 
On the economic side we worked with the Cyprus government to strengthen the fight against money laundering, she said, noting that there has been a really good progress on that front and that they look forward to continue this cooperation.
 
“We are going to continue to work on security cooperation. There is a lot we can do there. As we all come together out of the pandemic, I think it is really important to focus on the economic cooperation. We are all going to face the same challenge of growing our economies and there is a lot of really good potential there and things we can do together,” she noted.
 
 She also said that they want to work a lot with the Cyprus government on cyber security.
 
The Ambassador noted that they will be working with the US companies to restart the development of hydrocarbons in Cyprus EEZ, noting that they are very pleased that US companies are participating in this process. She also noted that they will be focusing on encouraging more Cypriots to study in US universities.
 
Asked about Turkey’s activities in Cyprus’ Exclusive Economic Zone, Garber said that the US has been very clear in its support for the Republic of Cyprus to develop national resources in its EEZ. “We also hope that the benefits of those resources will be shared equitably between the communities”, she noted.
 
She said that the US public statements on this have called out Turkey’s actions as provocative and unhelpful, noting that “that continues to be our position.”
 
Invited to say how could more American investments be attracted to Cyprus, the Ambassador said that “every crisis brings an opportunity”. She also congratulated the Cyprus government on the way it handled the COVID-19 pandemic, noting the international recognition for that.
 
“I think this gives that a very good base on which to grow things,” she added.
 
She went on to say that Cypriots are extremely well educated, noting that Cyprus is a fantastic place for people to operate their businesses.
 
Invited to say what the US is concretely doing to put pressure on Turkey to stop its actions in the Eastern Mediterranean, the Ambassador said that “the security of the Eastern Mediterranean is important to the US,” adding that they approach the Eastern Mediterranean as a coherent strategic space.
 
“Our relationship with Turkey is complicated. I think Turkey’s relationship with many countries is complicated. Turkey is a NATO ally and we believe that it is important to continue to engage with Turkey in a way that keeps Turkey anchored to the West. Our goal is to remove areas of friction where we can but to do so in a way that is in accordance with the principles on which we are all working,” she added.
 
“We call out Turkey’s actions when we think that there is need to be called out for instance in the question concerning the development of resources in the Republic of Cyprus’ EEZ, but there are also areas where we do work constructively with Turkey,” she noted.

Asked if US Secretary Pompeo is going to visit Cyprus, after the postponement of the visit to the island that he was going to pay earlier this year, Garber said they are hopeful that there will be an opportunity to reschedule it and that the COVID-pandemic was not helpful to this.
 
“I can’t tell you when and if the Secretary of State will come for a visit. I as much as anyone else hope that he certainly will be able to reschedule that visit,” she noted.

Asked about the lifting of the US arms embargo against Cyprus, Garber recalled that US President Donald Trump signed last year the Eastern Mediterranean Energy and Security Partnership Act. She noted that that provides for the defence trade restrictions that currently apply to be lifted provided that the Republic of Cyprus continues to cooperate with the US in the fight against money laundering and that it continues steps to reduce the visits of Russian naval ships in the ports in Cyprus.
 
The President delegated about two or three months ago the authority to make those certifications to the Secretary of State, and so those questions have been looked out at this time, she added.
 
Asked about Turkey’s efforts to change the status of Agia Sophia and turn it into a mosque, Garber recalled the statement made by the US Secretary of State on this issue. “We call for Agia Sophia to continue to be a museum and to continue to have access for everyone. That is very important to us. Freedom of religion is something that is a priority for this administration,” she noted.

Cyprus has been divided since 1974, when Turkish troops invaded and occupied its northern third. Turkey has ignored numerous UN resolutions calling for the withdrawal of the Turkish troops and respect of the integrity and sovereignty of the Republic of Cyprus.

Turkish drill ship “Yavuz” arrived last April in the exclusive economic zone (ΕΕΖ) of Cyprus, after Ankara announced another attempt to drill a well in blocks licensed to European companies. This is the 6th time Turkey attempts to drill within the EEZ and continental shelf of the Republic of Cyprus, this time in an area that covers part of exploration blocks 6 and 7, which have been licensed to ENI and TOTA