Cyprus is an island located in the Mediterranean Sea, 30 miles south of Turkey. The Republic of Cyprus is the internationally recognized government of the island, but controls only the southern two-thirds of the island. The northern third was occupied by Turkey in a 1974 invasion, which has since set up the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, though this government is not recognized by any country except Turkey. In the decades since the invasion, the northern third has become almost exclusively Turkish, and the southern two-thirds almost exclusively Greek, so the territories are now sometimes referred to as the "Greek part" and the "Turkish part" of Cyprus.
Negotiations have been ongoing for years to reunify the island, but have not as of yet seen substantial success. Barring a last-minute breakthrough, the 2004 admittance of the Republic of Cyprus to the European Union will thus mean that effectively only the southern, Greek portion of the island will become part of the EU.
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National motto: None | |||
Official languages | Greek, Turkish and English | ||
Capital | Nicosia | ||
President | Tassos Papadopoulos | ||
Area - Total - % water | Ranked 161st 9,250 km² ¹ Negligible | ||
Population - Total (2002) | Ranked 155th 771,657 | ||
Independence - Date | From the UK August 16, 1960 | ||
Currency | Cyprus pound | ||
Time zone | UTC +2 | ||
National anthem | Imnos pros tin Eleftherian | ||
Internet TLD | .CY | ||
Calling Code | 357 | ||
¹ 3,355 km² are in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus | |||
- History of Cyprus
- Geography of Cyprus
- Demographics of Cyprus
- Politics of Cyprus
- Culture of Cyprus (Music of Cyprus)
- Economy of Cyprus
- Communications in Cyprus
- Transportation in Cyprus
- Military of Cyprus
- Foreign relations of Cyprus
See also
Reference
- Much of the material in these articles comes from the CIA World Factbook 2000 and the 2003 U.S. Department of State website.
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