A Middle East Forum scholar told Congress this week that Turkey's justification for occupying northern Cyprus is, in his...

A Middle East Forum scholar told Congress this week that Turkey's justification for occupying northern Cyprus is, in his words, "ahistorical nonsense," and he called on Secretary of State Marco Rubio to formally declare the north "occupied territory." Michael Rubin, testifying before the House Foreign Affairs Committee, argued that Turkey's claim of protecting Cypriot Muslims in 1974 mirrors the same logic Russia used to justify its annexation of Crimea in 2014, and that comparing it to Nazi Germany's annexation of the Sudetenland is not hyperbole but an accurate legal parallel. He pointed out that Turkey's own Treaty of Guarantee obligated it to restore constitutional order, not establish a permanent military presence that has lasted more than 50 years. Rubin walked the committee through the 1974 timeline in detail. The Greek military junta backed a coup against Cyprus's elected president, Archbishop Makarios III, on July 15 of that year. Turkey invaded five days later, citing the treaty. But critically, Rubin noted, Turkey launched a second invasion on July 24, the very day the Greek junta collapsed and democracy was restored, a moment when there was no longer any legal pretext whatsoever. He also took direct aim at the State Department's current posture, saying that refusing to use the word "occupied" rewards aggression rather than discouraging it. He drew a pointed comparison between Henry Kissinger's realpolitik approach in 1974, when Kissinger reportedly told President Ford there was "no American reason" Turkey shouldn't take a third of Cyprus, and the current approach of U.S. Ambassador Tom Barrack. Rubin argued that Greece and Cyprus are now among America's most dependable allies in the Eastern Mediterranean, while Turkey has become a source of regional instability from Libya to Gaza. His closing message to the committee was direct: Rubio should stop the word games and deliver a clear demand that Turkey end the occupation. #Cyprus #Turkey #EasternMediterranean