The government will lobby European Union nations to get them to reduce armaments sales to Turkey, and has asked parliament to assist in that effort.
The issue was discussed at the House foreign affairs committee on Tuesday.
Following the session, ruling Disy MP Harris Georgiades who tabled the matter for discussion spoke of Ankara’s aggressive and revisionist policies in the eastern Mediterranean, which pose a threat to Cyprus and Greece alike.
“Turkey has become a major arms exporter, and also has the capability to manufacture arms itself,” he said.
“It is a country that undermines stability and security in the wider region and, without being under any illusions, we must through our contacts with the parliaments of non-EU countries make it difficult for Turkey to transform into a hegemonic power that is based primarily on its military might.”
Despite strides achieved by Turkey’s domestic defence industry, the country continues to rely on armaments imports. Therefore, Georgiades argued, the Cypriot parliament must undertake diplomatic initiatives aimed at preventing these sales to Turkey.
Defence Minister Charalambos Petrides said there are two aspects to the issue.
“The first relates to exports and sales [TO TURKEY] of weapons, the second involves monitoring and gathering intelligence on the type of weapons possessed by Turkey.”
A foreign ministry official noted that since Turkey’s invasion of Syria, the EU, the United States and Canada have tightened up their arms export licences to Turkey an issue of concern to Turkey.
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