Akrotiri and Dhekelia

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There is also an Akrotiri peninsula on the island of Crete.

Akrotiri is also the location of Minoan ruins on the Greek island of Santorini.


The flag of the UK is used in both Sovereign Base Areas
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The flag of the UK is used in both Sovereign Base Areas
Map of Akrotiri (Western) SBA
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Map of Akrotiri (Western) SBA
Map of Dhekelia (Eastern) SBA
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Map of Dhekelia (Eastern) SBA
Map of Cyprus showing the position of Akrotiri and Dhekelia in red
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Map of Cyprus showing the position of Akrotiri and Dhekelia in red

Akrotiri (Greek: Ακρωτήρι; along with Episkopi Garrison, is part of an area known as the Western Sovereign Base Area or WSBA) and Dhekelia (Greek: Δεκέλεια; along with Ayios Nikolaos is part of the Eastern Sovereign Base Area or ESBA) are UK Sovereign Base Areas (SBAs) in Cyprus, a former British Crown Colony. Akrotiri is located in the south of the island near the city of Limassol (or Lemesos). Dhekelia is in the southeast near Larnaca. Both of these areas include military bases as well as farmland and some residential land. Akrotiri is surrounded by the territory controlled by the Republic of Cyprus, but Dhekelia also borders on the United Nations (UN) buffer zone and the territory controlled by the Turkish occupied part of the island.

A British garrison force, British Forces Cyprus, is stationed there to defend them. They contain a British listening post, and the only fully fledged Royal Air Force (RAF) station in the Mediterranean (since Gibraltar does not have any aircraft permanently based there), RAF Akrotiri. In addition to the garrison, the United Kingdom makes a contribution to the UN force in Cyprus. In total, some 3,500 British personnel are based in Cyprus.

There is certain disorientation when entering the military parts of a sovereign base area (unlike Guantanamo Bay, there are roads running through the territory and even through the military camps themselves, which are open to traffic from Cyprus). In particular, the road names in the military camps are all very English, like "Worcester Road". Civilian laws are enacted by the British civilian authorities, but are patterned on those of the Republic of Cyprus. Many Cypriots work in the SBAs, mainly for the British authorities or as farmers, or for a few local businesses. But only those Cypriots with a local connection are permitted to live there, such as those who live in Akrotiri village or in the outskirts of villages neighbouring the bases.

The villages of Xylotymvou and Ormidhia, in the Republic of Cyprus, are enclaves surrounded by Dhekelia SBA. The Dhekelia Power Station, which is divided by a British road into two parts, also belongs to Cyprus. The northern part is an enclave like the two villages, whereas the southern part is located by the sea and therefore not an enclave —yet it has no territorial waters of its own [1].

The Sovereign Bases in Cyprus are an overseas territory, but instead of having a Governor, like other such territories, it has an Administrator, whom, while appointed by the Queen, is responsible to the Ministry of Defence, not to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. Since May 9, 2003, the administrator has been Major General Peter Pearson.

A sizeable antenna (probably an over the horizon radar) was erected within the Akrotiri base, raising concern for the effect on local wildlife and on the health of people living in Limassol.

Ayios Nikolaos, in the WSBA, is a listening station of the intelligence network ECHELON.

The bases have a complex relationship with the European Union as governed by various treaties. See Sovereign bases on Cyprus.

Cyprus has shown increasing opposition to the use and existence of the bases. Cypriot officials claim that the bases take up a large amount of territory that could be used for civilian development. There has also been a call upon the British government to fulfill its financial obligations to Cyprus. Estimates for this range from several hundred thousand to over one billion Euros.

References

See also

External links


edit British dependencies Flag of the United Kingdom
Overseas territories: Anguilla | Bermuda | British Antarctic Territory | British Indian Ocean Territory | British Virgin Islands | Cayman Islands | Falkland Islands | Gibraltar | Montserrat | Pitcairn Islands | Saint Helena (Ascension, Tristan da Cunha) | South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands | Turks and Caicos Islands
Crown dependencies: Guernsey | Jersey | Isle of Man
UK Sovereign Base Areas: Akrotiri and Dhekelia (in Cyprus)
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