Greece declassifies intelligence records on 1974 Cyprus crisis

ATHENS (Reuters) – Greece’s intelligence service on Wednesday declassified 58 intelligence reports connected to the Greek-led coup in Cyprus in 1974 and the subsequent Turkish invasion, giving an inside account of the historic events for the first time.

The redacted documents shed light on the Greek perspective between July and August 1974 and have been released with the aim of contributing to a more comprehensive understanding of what happened, Greece’s National Intelligence Service (EYP) said in a statement.

The move coincided with the 50th anniversary of events on Cyprus, whose impact is still felt. The Greek-led coup prompted a Turkish invasion five days later and led to the division of Cyprus, which persists today. It also comes as Greece and Turkey, NATO allies but historic foes, seek ways to improve relations through diplomacy.

“Fifty years is quite a long and therefore quite safe period of time, which, even if it doesn’t force you to, allows you to look back in an exercise of national but also of professional self-awareness,” EYP director-general Themistoklis Demiris said.

Reports from early to mid-July 1974 focus almost entirely on simmering tensions between Greece’s military junta, which had seized power in Athens in 1967, and Cyprus.

Nicosia considered that Athens was interfering in its internal affairs and was behind the activities of EOKA B, a subversive paramilitary group plotting at the time against the Cypriot government.

One report, dated July 2, 1974, recounts the “shrill” warnings of Cypriot officials who wanted the Greek military presence on Cyprus to be curbed. Another expressed concern about a Communist takeover should the Greeks leave.

“Talk of expelling Greek officers has sown fear and disquiet among nationalist-minded people of all social stratas, because of the Communist risk which is widely believed to manifest itself after Greek officers leave,” one entry on July 4 said.

The junta orchestrated a coup in Cyprus on July 15, triggering Turkey’s invasion and its occupation of the north of the island. Under the weight of the Cyprus crisis, Greece’s junta collapsed nine days later.

Subsequent reports focused on military hostilities and army movements in Cyprus and Greece, which had issued a general mobilisation alert in the wake of the developments.

Five decades on, Cyprus remains split along ethnic lines, with a Greek-speaking south under the internationally recognised Cypriot government and a breakaway Turkish-speaking north that is recognised only by Ankara.