Cyprus

• Middle East, island in the Mediterranean Sea, south of Turkey;
• note - Cyprus views itself as part of Europe;
• geopolitically, it can be classified as falling within Europe, the Middle East, or both

agricultural land:

13.4%;

• arable land 9.8%;
• permanent crops 3.2%;
• permanent pasture 0.4%

forest:

18.8%

other:

67.8% (2011 est.)

• water resource problems (no natural reservoir catchments, seasonal disparity in rainfall, sea water intrusion to island's largest aquifer, increased salination in the north);
• water pollution from sewage and industrial wastes;
• coastal degradation;
• loss of wildlife habitats from urbanization

noun:

Cypriot(s)

adjective:

Cypriot

at birth:

1.05 male(s)/female

0-14 years:

1.06 male(s)/female

15-24 years:

1.19 male(s)/female

25-54 years:

1.11 male(s)/female

55-64 years:

0.92 male(s)/female

65 years and over:

0.77 male(s)/female

total population:

1.04 male(s)/female (2016 est.)

name:

Nicosia (Lefkosia/Lefkosa)

geographic coordinates:

35 10 N, 33 22 E

time difference:

UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

daylight saving time:

+1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October

• 6 districts;
• Ammochostos (Famagusta);
• (all but a small part located in the Turkish Cypriot community), Keryneia (Kyrenia; the only district located entirely in the Turkish Cypriot community), Larnaka (Larnaca; with a small part located in the Turkish Cypriot community), Lefkosia (Nicosia; a small part administered by Turkish Cypriots), Lemesos (Limassol), Pafos (Paphos);
• note - the 5 "districts" of the "TRNC" are Gazimagusa (Famagusta), Girne (Kyrenia), Guzelyurt (Morphou), Iskele (Trikomo), Lefkosia (Nicosia)

• ratified 16 August 1960;
• amended 1996, 2013;
• note - in 1963, the constitution was partly suspended as Turkish Cypriots withdrew from the government;
• Turkish-held territory in 1983 was declared the "Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus" ("TRNC");
• in 1985, the "TRNC" approved its own constitution (2016)

citizenship by birth:

no

citizenship by descent only:

at least one parent must be a citizen of Cyprus

dual citizenship recognized:

yes

residency requirement for naturalization:

7 years

description:

• area under government control: unicameral House of Representatives or Vouli Antiprosopon (80 seats; 56 assigned to Greek Cypriots, 24 to Turkish Cypriots, but only those assigned to Greek Cypriots are filled; members directly elected by both proportional representation and preferential vote; members serve 5-year terms);
• area administered by Turkish Cypriots: unicameral Assembly of the Republic or Cumhuriyet Meclisi (50 seats; members directly elected by proportional representation vote to serve 5-year terms)

elections:

• area under government control: last held on 22 May 2016 (next to be held in May 2021);
• area administered by Turkish Cypriots: last held on 28 July 2013 (next to be held on July 2018)

election results:

• area under government control: House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - DISY 30.7%, AKEL 25.7%, DIKO 14.5%, KS-EDEK 6.2%, Citizen's Alliance 5.0% Solidarity Movement 5.2%, other 11.7%;
• seats by party - DISY 18, AKEL 16, DIKO 9, KS-EDEK 3, Citizen's Alliance 3, Solidarity Movement 3, other 7;
• area administered by Turkish Cypriots: "Assembly of the Republic" - percent of vote by party - CTP-BG 38.4%, UBP 27.3%, DP-UG 23.2%, TDP 7.4%, other 3.7%;
• seats by party - CTP-BG 21, UBP 14, DP-UG 12, TDP 3

highest court(s):

• Supreme Court of Cyprus (consists of 13 judges including the court president);
• note - the highest court in the "Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC)" is the "Supreme Court" (consists of 8 "judges" including the "court president")

judge selection and term of office:

• Republic of Cyprus Supreme Court judges appointed by the president of the republic upon the recommendation of the Supreme Court judges;
• judges can serve until age 68;
• "TRNC Supreme Court" judges appointed by the "Supreme Council of Judicature," a 12-member body of judges, the attorney general, appointees - 1 each by the president of the "TRNC" and by the "Legislative Assembly" - and 1 member elected by the bar association;
• judge tenure NA

subordinate courts:

• Republic of Cyprus district courts;
• Assize Courts;
• specialized courts for issues relating to family, industrial disputes, military, and rent control;
• "TRNC Assize Courts";
• "district and family courts"

• Citizens' Alliance or SP [Giorgos LILLIKAS]
• Democratic Party or DIKO [Nikolas PAPADOPOULOS]
• Democratic Rally or DISY [Averof NEOPHYTOU (of Neofytou)]
• Ecological and Environmental Movement or KOP (Green Party) [Giorgos PERDIKIS]
• European Party or EVROKO [Dimitris SYLLOURIS]
• Movement of Social Democrats or KS-EDEK [Marinos SIZOPOULOS]
• National Popular Front or ELAM [Christos CHRISTOU]
• Progressive Party of the Working People or AKEL (Communist Party) [Andros KYPRIANOU]
• Solidarity Movement [Eleni THEOCHAROUS]
• United Democrats or EDI [Praxoula ANTONIADOU]
• Communal Democracy Party or TDP [Cemal OZYIGIT]
• Cyprus Socialist Party or KSP [Mehmet BIRINCI]
• Democrat Party- National Forces or DP-UG [Serdar DENKTAS]
• National Justice Party or UAP [Fatma SOLMAZ]
• National Unity Party or UBP [Huseyin OZGURGUN]
• New Cyprus Party or YKP [Murat KANATLI]
• People's Party or HP [Kudret OZERSAY]
• Republican Turkish Party-United Forces or CTP-BG [Mehmet Ali TALAT]
• Social Democratic Party or SDP [Tozun TUNALI]
• United Cyprus Party or BKP [Izzet IZCAN]

chief of mission:

Ambassador Leonidas PANTELIDIS (since 27 June 2016)

chancery:

2211 R Street NW, Washington, DC 20008

telephone:

[1] (202) 462-5772, 462-0873

FAX:

[1] (202) 483-6710

consulate(s) general:

New York

note: representative of the Turkish Cypriot community in the US is Ismet KORUKOGLU; office at 1667 K Street NW, Washington, DC; telephone [1] (202) 887-6198

chief of mission:

Ambassador Kathleen Ann DOHERTY (since 7 October 2015)

embassy:

corner of Metochiou and Ploutarchou Streets, 2407 Engomi, Nicosia

mailing address:

P. O. Box 24536, 1385 Nicosia

telephone:

[357] (22) 393939

FAX:

[357] (22) 780944

name:

"Ymnos eis tin Eleftherian" (Hymn to Liberty)

lyrics/music:

Dionysios SOLOMOS/Nikolaos MANTZAROS

note: adopted 1960; Cyprus adopted the Greek national anthem as its own; the Turkish Cypriot community in Cyprus uses the anthem of Turkey

• citrus, vegetables, barley, grapes, olives, vegetables;
• poultry, pork, lamb;
• dairy, cheese

Agriculture - products:

citrus fruit, dairy, potatoes, grapes, olives, poultry, lamb

agriculture:

3.8%

industry:

15.2%

services:

81% (2014 est.)

Labor force - by occupation:

agriculture: 14.5%, industry: 29%, services: 56.5% (2004)

lowest 10%:

3.3%

highest 10%:

28.8% (2014)

general assessment:

excellent in both area under government control and area administered by Turkish Cypriots

domestic:

open-wire, fiber-optic cable, and microwave radio relay

international:

• country code - 357 (area administered by Turkish Cypriots uses the country code of Turkey - 90);
• a number of submarine cables, including the SEA-ME-WE-3, combine to provide connectivity to Western Europe, the Middle East, and Asia;
• tropospheric scatter;
• satellite earth stations - 8 (3 Intelsat - 1 Atlantic Ocean and 2 Indian Ocean, 2 Eutelsat, 2 Intersputnik, and 1 Arabsat)

• mixture of state and privately run TV and radio services;
• the public broadcaster operates 2 TV channels and 4 radio stations;
• 6 private TV broadcasters, satellite and cable TV services including telecasts from Greece and Turkey, and a number of private radio stations are available;
• in areas administered by Turkish Cypriots, there are 2 public TV stations, 4 public radio stations, and privately owned TV and radio broadcast stations (2007)

number of registered air carriers:

2; inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 6

annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers:

23,404

annual freight traffic on registered air carriers:

230,600 mt-km (2015)

total:

20,006 km

government control:

13,006 km (includes 2,277 km of expressways)

paved:

8,564 km

unpaved:

4,442 km

Turkish Cypriot control:

7,000 km (2011)

country comparison to the world: 108

Cypriot National Guard (CNG):

• 18-50 years of age for compulsory military service for all Greek Cypriot males;
• 17 years of age for voluntary service;
• 14-month service obligation (2016)

• hostilities in 1974 divided the island into two de facto autonomous entities, the internationally recognized Cypriot Government and a Turkish-Cypriot community (north Cyprus);
• the 1,000-strong UN Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP) has served in Cyprus since 1964 and maintains the buffer zone between north and south;
• on 1 May 2004, Cyprus entered the EU still divided, with the EU's body of legislation and standards (acquis communitaire) suspended in the north;
• Turkey protests Cypriot Government creating hydrocarbon blocks and maritime boundary with Lebanon in March 2007

• minor transit point for heroin and hashish via air routes and container traffic to Europe, especially from Lebanon and Turkey;
• some cocaine transits as well;
• despite a strengthening of anti-money-laundering legislation, remains vulnerable to money laundering;
• reporting of suspicious transactions in offshore sector remains weak (2008)