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Arming Cyprus, the next step to deterring Putin and Erdogan – Analysis

Deterring? Deterring? The Biden administration is becoming more dangerous. Think about this news in context of all that is on going presently.

Sept 28/22-themanews.com

Earlier this month, the Biden administration lifted the three-and-a-half-decade-old ban on the sale of U.S. arms to the Republic of Cyprus. With the ban in place, America had tied one arm behind its back in the Eastern Mediterranean. The United States already arms Israel and Greece but, until now, had not extended a similar hand to Cyprus, a critical partner in deterring Russian and Turkish aggression.

The increasingly contested region hosts massive offshore energy discoveries and sits at the intersection of the chaotic European, Middle Eastern and African theaters. With the Biden administration making the important decision to remove the arms ban for one year, Washington can bolster this vital region’s stability by providing the Republic of Cyprus with much-needed American-made arms.

Congress restricted the sale of U.S. arms to Cyprus in 1987, hoping it would incentivize a diplomatic settlement to the island’s frozen conflict. Yet, Cyprus remains divided still. All that the arms ban accomplished was to push the Republic of Cyprus toward Russia while undermining its ability to promote stability in the Eastern Mediterranean. Last year, President Biden renewed a one-year limited waiver that President Trump first issued to allow the sale of non-lethal defense articles to Cyprus, a recognition both of Cyprus’s importance and the arms ban’s deleteriousness to U.S. interests.

The image included with this article is below. I’m hoping my readers recognize the woman? If you don’t this is “F*** the EU” Victoria Nuland and the Cypriot Foreign Minister

As the region becomes increasingly contested because of offshore natural gas discoveries and as an epicenter of global strategic competition, Cyprus is an important U.S. partner against Russia’s growing aggression and Turkey’s unreliable foreign policy. With America’s European partners looking to decrease their reliance on Russian energy, the development of natural gas routes through the Mediterranean is increasingly important.

The image of Victoria Nuland was included in this previous report:

U.S. Under Secretary of State Victoria Nuland, left and Cypriot Foreign Affairs Minister Ioannis Kasoulides shake hands at the unveiling of CYCLOPS, in southeast port city of Larnaca, Cyprus, Wednesday, April 6, 2022. The U.S. funded facility providing training to regional forces for border and maritime security, cybersecurity and nonproliferation of weapons of mass destruction. Nuland said the facility stands as a symbol of the growing and strengthening bilateral security relationship between the U.S. and Cyprus that is “irreversible.”

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