• Despite the ambiguous legal status of Northern Cyprus, real estate is popular here among foreigners. Quite democratic prices for houses and villas, as well as a simplified procedure for obtaining a residence permit, attract investors from all over the world. And for serious clients, real estate agencies are ready to arrange a viewing tour to Northern Cyprus as early as next weekend.
The history of the division of Cyprus is as bitter as it is commonplace. In 1974, immediately after the military coup in Greece, several Turkish divisions from the mainland occupied the northern part of the island: as the Turkish government stated, "to protect the Turkish population from possible looting." Since then, there have been two republics in Cyprus: the rich, Greek-populated Republic of Cyprus - recognized by the international community, a desirable destination for thousands of tourists, and since some time - also a favorite "home for old new Russians" (many wealthy domestic nouveaux riches settled here after retiring from business); and the Republic of Northern Cyprus - a poor agrarian region, recognized only by Turkey and living mostly on Turkish handouts.
Many times Greece and Turkey were even on the brink of armed conflict - two NATO members, unable to share a single island, insist on their rightness. Rich residents of southern Cyprus still feel offended: after all, a huge number of Greek Cypriots simply lost their land holdings, their deposits - they were, as revolutionaries and bandits like to say, "expropriated" by Turkish soldiers. Southern Cyprus, despite giant losses, found the strength to emerge from a protracted crisis and restore its shaken well-being. Northern Cyprus, subjected to all conceivable trade and political embargoes, on the contrary, became even poorer. "The fact that the Greeks did not want to unite with us could have been foreseen," melancholically states Anil Izik, a reporter for the Cypriot-Turkish newspaper "Kibris." "A small hope, of course, existed, but it did not come true."
Of course, Greek Cypriots can be understood. They were thrown out of their own homes 30 years ago, and now they are asked to come to terms with the loss of if not everything, then part of the property taken from them (such concessions are provided for by the settlement plan developed by UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan), and with the fact that the fruits of their many years of labor should now be used by "migrant workers" who came from Turkey, who with the help of a mere referendum want to gain access to all the benefits that Cyprus's entry into the European Union promises.
However, the paradox is that the very world community that for 30 years stood on the side of the Greeks refused to support the position of the residents of Southern Cyprus. First of all, European politicians, almost in unison, began to rebuke their new neighbors in the European "home": they are supposedly arrogant, refuse to listen to the voice of reason in favor of feelings... Last week, statements from Washington and Brussels followed almost simultaneously: both the United States and the European Union intend to lift the embargo on Northern Cyprus, send quite impressive investment flows here - in general, give the Turkish Cypriots everything that their Greek compatriots received in their time. Thus, the leaders of the first world countries intend to develop the economy of the northerners so much that it becomes more interesting for the southerners to unite.
European Commissioner for Enlargement Günter Verheugen promises the rejected Turkish Cypriots a truly golden rain as consolation: "Even without recognition of Northern Cyprus, one can work with it together," he stated. Moreover, "working together" means for Verheugen a number of quite specific figures: Northern Cyprus should initially receive 259 million euros from the European pot - for the development of infrastructure, communications, and other benefits of civilization, without which modern life is impossible to imagine. At the same time, the European Commission literally forces the government of Southern Cyprus to ease the passage of goods across the intra-Cypriot border - primarily to stimulate the export of olives and citrus fruits from the northern part of the island.
It is characteristic that these actions find unconditional support not only from European governments, but also from many opposition politicians. "These steps are correct," says prominent German diplomat, CDU member Elmar Brok, "Turkish Cypriots cannot be punished for wanting unification." It seems that with their “no” to the unification of the island, the Greek Cypriots achieved a result directly opposite to what was expected: the whole world rushed to help the unrecognized and previously rejected Turks, and so much so that, lo and behold, official recognition is not far off. With everything that such a step entails - membership in the UN, a legitimate government and... a legal right to territories once annexed.
There is one more important detail in this bizarre arrangement. Since the Republic of Northern Cyprus is still not recognized in the world, legally on May 1, 2004, the whole of Cyprus joined the European Union. The borders of the island became external borders of the EU. The accession treaty contains a paragraph stating: "In the event of the failure of the referendum on unification, EU legal norms will apply only to the southern part of Cyprus." However, the 30,000 Turkish soldiers formally located in the north of the island find themselves inside the EU. Henceforth, the "Cyprus issue," which until now has been the main stumbling block on Turkey's path to the European Union, is simply relegated to the background: in 2015, the question will be only whether Turkey is ready to join the European "family." That is, de facto Turkey has already got one foot in Europe, and this foot is shod in a soldier's boot.
All this cannot but upset the Greek Cypriots. What they voted against in the referendum has actually happened: they will not get the land back, Turkish troops will remain on the island, and the North is becoming practically recognized in the world. That is why no sooner had Cyprus joined the EU than the country's government was shaken by a severe crisis. The opposition, through its leader Nikos Anastasiadis, accuses the government of conducting the referendum in an 'undemocratic and unfair' manner: supporters of the negative decision, he says, received 100 hours of television airtime for their propaganda, while its opponents received only 66 hours. The wife of President Tassos Papadopoulos is accused of secretly financing the campaign of opponents of the island's unification, and refugees who have lost hope of returning to the north believe that Papadopoulos simply betrayed them. They have already founded a civic initiative and intend to sue the government, choosing the well-known lawyer Achilleas Demetriades as their legal representative. The latter is known for winning the case in which Greek Cypriot Titina Loizidou received 1.2 million euros from the Turkish government: for 30 years the exile had been unable to use her land plot in northern Cyprus.