Greece’s intelligence agency declassified documents on Wednesday for the first time in its history, shedding light on the events surrounding the Turkish invasion of Cyprus in 1974.
The invasion occurred following a coup led by a military dictatorship in Athens, which prompted Turkey to intervene. Since then, Cyprus has been divided into a Greek-speaking, UN-recognized republic in the south and a Turkish Cypriot north that declared independence in 1983.
Professor Evanthis Hatzivassiliou of the National University of Athens stated that the newly released archives cover the period of the invasion, from July to August 1974. According to Hatzivassiliou, the documents reveal that Greece’s intelligence agency, EYP, was not informed about the planned coup against Cyprus’ president, Archbishop Makarios, by the Greek dictatorship. He added that the dictatorship only briefed those who were absolutely necessary.
Following the coup, the agency accurately described Turkey’s military preparations, though these warnings were ignored by Athens. This failure to defend Cyprus led to the downfall of the Greek dictatorship in July 1974, followed by a second Turkish invasion in August.
EYP’s director-general, Themistoklis Demiris, also mentioned that the agency plans to declassify more documents related to other “dark” periods in Greek history, though he did not provide further details.
