Washington tightening the noose around Ankara

Shaimaa Yahia

The U.S. has declared support to Cyprus as it keeps locked in a conflict with Turkey which has plans to control the East Mediterranean and the whole Middle East region.

The new move by the U.S. will deal a painful blow to Turkish plans, against the background of its violations in the region.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo visited Cyprus on September 12. His visit came after President Donald Trump held talks over the phone with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis.

The talks focused mainly on Ankara’s illegitimate exploration activities in the East Mediterranean.

Pompeo expressed hopes that the parties involved in the conflict would be able to find a peaceful settlement.

He said his country would work to achieve that goal, expressing hopes for the presence of real dialogue between the parties concerned.

Pompeo also encouraged the different parties to withdraw their military equipment from the region so that the dialogue can take place.

He referred to the role Germany plays in putting the lid on tensions in the region.

France also played an important role in cutting Turkish arrogance to size by backing Greece and Cyprus.

Pompeo’s visit to Cyprus came after his country lifted a ban on the sale of arms to the country. The move angered Turkey.

The move ends a 23-year ban on the sale of arms to Cyprus. It came to underline the partnership between the Mediterranean island and the U.S. It also came to enhance cooperation between Washington and Nicosia.

The same move came to deal with Turkish practices in the region after the failure of the international community to deal with these practices or denounce them.