The Green Line: A Desolate No Man’s Land Between Cyprus and Turkey

The Green Line refers to an artificial border put in place by the United Nations between the two halves of Cyprus: the Greek Cypriot (Southern) and Turkish-occupied (Northern) sections of the island. It was installed on the 30th of December 1963, albeit to a much smaller scale than its existence today, as a temporary measure to stop the inter-communal riots running rampant across the nation’s capital, Nicosia, which much of the line runs through. Despite this, the Green Line has now stood for almost 60 years, with little to no viable solution in sight.

The line stretches across the island across over 180 kilometres, with a width of up to 7.4 kilometres. At an incredible 346 square kilometres, the line covers approximately 3.7% of the island’s total area.[1] This astronomical size first came into existence in 1974, when the borders and reach of the line had to have been extended by the UN in order to put a stop to the Turkish invasion of the island, as well as to cement the fact that further conflict would not be tolerated. As a result of the war, several areas within the zone are listed as being entirely ‘out of bounds’ even for individuals affiliated with the UN. This is due to the innumerable level of land mines scattered across the zone. A clearance project has made incredible work on this fact, however, with over 27,000 landmines having been cleared thus far, resulting in 11 square kilometres of land being marked as safe, with the work continuing.[2]

The southernmost and northernmost parts of the Green Line mark the exact spots where the nations agreed to a ceasefire on the 16th of August 1974,[3] resulting in the huge area of land that many locals have nicknamed ‘No Man’s Land’. While this is accurate in much of the zone, multiple villages within the buffer zone still exist to this day, with thousands being able to call the Green Line their home. A notable location on the island is the village of Pyla, which is the only village in the entire nation where Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots live alongside one another.[4] Lack of human contact in much of the zone has also led to a flourish in the realm of flora and fauna, leading many people to believe that this is where the name ‘Green Line’ comes from. In fact, the name refers to the green pen which was used to mark the line on a map upon its inception in 1963. Multiple nods to the island’s rich history also exist within the zone, such as the Selimiye Mosque (formerly the Cathedral of St Sophia), which serves as a physical reminder of Cyprus's history of occupation by the Franks (1192-1489), the Ottomans (1571-1871) and the British (1878-1960).[5] Additionally, 2003 saw the government of the Turkish-Occupied area open a handful of crossing points within the line to allow for easy legal travel between the halves of the island. This has caused great controversy, however, as it requires for one to show their passport as if exiting their country, which to many Greek Cypriots is ‘a recognition of the Turkish Cypriot power on the island.’[6]

By direct contrast, however, one can easily look towards Ermou Street, which was once perhaps the closest location Cyprus has had to its own Oxford Street in the sense that it was once the island’s main shopping street. The road is now entirely abandoned, having been left to die for decades. A similar reminder of what once was can be seen in countless places across the buffer zone, with once bustling villages, shops, and restaurants appearing frighteningly desolate.

Despite the UN’s best efforts, however, ‘approximately 1,000 incidents occur within the buffer zone each year, ranging from name-calling to unauthorized use of firearms’.[7] While the aforementioned statistic that the line’s widest point reaches 7.4 kilometres is true, at certain points the width decreases to a narrow margin of as little as 3.3 metres.[8] With multiple army bases from both sides of the conflict being situated as close to the border as the UN permits, it is no surprise that the number of incidents reported each year fails to wane. Conflict aside, another issue faced constantly is unauthorized civilian construction within the zone. The fact that the official title the area holds is a mere ‘Buffer Zone’ means that the law regarding land ownership and property is incredibly unclear, a key factor that the United Nations Peacekeeping Force In Cyprus (UNFICYP) is keen to resolve.

The largest issue – making the current situation seem nearly unsolvable – is the entirely different stances that Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot politicians maintain on the matter. ‘Whereas the Greek Cypriots are only willing to accept a settlement based on either a federation with strong central powers, or a unitary state, the Turkish Cypriots prefer two independent states or a confederation.’[9] Therefore, a compromise that both parties would accept seems to be too daunting of a task. Despite this political divide, however, a recent survey across the island discovered that the Turkish Cypriot people themselves are willing to accept a central federation. ‘Five out of seven Turkish Cypriots stated that a federation will be the most feasible solution’,[10] a figure that should provide great hope to the UNFICYP, who have struggled to amass the support of both sides in recent history, greatly weakening the impact it is capable of having.

To expand on the role that the UNFICYP is playing today, the organization aims to restore the island to what has been titled ‘normal conditions’. This has led to a recent flurry in special areas – officially named ‘Civil Use Areas’ – that allows citizens of both sides to freely trade, travel, and work without any need for government authorization. The organization reports that over 10 thousand people either live in or have permanent jobs within the Civil Use Areas.[11] UNFICYP predicts that in the next few years several more Pyla-like villages will emerge, allowing for further integration within the communities. While most feel that the complete restoration of normality is an unrealistic expectation, it is relieving to see genuine progress being made, with inhabitants of both sides of the island being able to envision a future where the two can share an island without the need of a third party such as the UN to maintain the peace.

[1] Military Histories, ‘The Buffer Zone Across the Island’ (Military Histories 2021) <https://www.militaryhistories.co.uk/greenline/explanation> accessed 8th February 2022

[2] ibid

[3] United Nations Peacekeeping Force In Cyprus, ‘About The Buffer Zone’ (UNFICYP 28 November 2018) <https://unficyp.unmissions.org/about-buffer-zone> accessed 8th February 2022

[4] ibid

[5] Elliot Graves, ‘The Green Line: Nicosia's urban no-man's land’ (Durham University 2019) <https://artsandculture.google.com/story/the-green-line-nicosia-s-urban-no-man-s-land/qQLy4s1nBVyoKA> accessed 8th February 2022

[6] Cyprus Island, ‘Green Line – Nicosia’, (Cyprus Island 2021) <https://www.cyprusisland.net/attractions/green-line-nicosia> accessed 8th February 2022

[7] United Nations Peacekeeping Force In Cyprus, ‘About The Buffer Zone’ (UNFICYP 28 November 2018) <https://unficyp.unmissions.org/about-buffer-zone> accessed 8th February 2022

[8] Military Histories, ‘The Buffer Zone Across the Island’ (Military Histories 2021) <https://www.militaryhistories.co.uk/greenline/explanation> accessed 8th February 2022

[9] Hannah Verena Odenthal, ‘The Green Line, Cyprus: a Space of Exception or an Exceptional Space?’, (Radboud University Nijmegen 2013) <https://theses.ubn.ru.nl/bitstream/handle/123456789/2831/Odenthal%2C_Hannah_Verena_1.pdf?sequence=1> accessed 1st March 2022

[10] ibid

[11] United Nations Peacekeeping Force In Cyprus, ‘About The Buffer Zone’ (UNFICYP 28 November 2018) <https://unficyp.unmissions.org/about-buffer-zone> accessed 8th February 2022