La France et la question chypriote, ou les zigzags de la politique chypriote de la France de 1965 à 2005

Abstract

The author analyzes how French policy regarding Cyprus from 1965 to 2005 zigzagged according to Franco-Turkish relations, French domestic policy, and Paris’ attitude towards the UN. Hostile to the treaties of Zurich and London which created the Cypriot Republic, the French Government denied the Cypriot state sovereignty both internally and externally from 1965 to 1969. In fact, France even refused accreditation to a Cypriot ambassador in Paris. In 1969, France received its first Cypriot ambassador and upheld the Greek policy on Cyprus, notably in 1974 when the Turkish army invaded Cypriot territory. In 1992, Francois Mitterrand’s visit to Turkey initiated a rebalancing of the French policy on Cyprus. This development may be explained by the desire of French businesses to gain access to the Turkish market. The author concludes by reviewing the pro-Turkish stance of Jacques Chirac, who did, nonetheless, plead for the diplomatic recognition of Cyprus by Ankara.