The Mediterranean Is a Sea of Political Troubles Again
A delicate balance of power in the strategic eastern Mediterranean region is being upset as the U.S. disengages
The Kyrenia mountain range painted with the flag of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.
Photographer: Patrick Baz/AFP via Getty Images
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After Turkey invaded Cyprus in 1974, it found itself short of military hardware. In stepped Muammar Qaddafi, and four Turkish DC-9 commercial aircraft with the seats stripped out were loaded with rockets from Libyan stockpiles of U.S.-made weaponry. He refused all payment.
“I can never forget the friendship shown by Qaddafi at a very difficult time,” retired Turkish diplomat Taner Baytok recalled in an interview with Hurriyet newspaper. “I describe it as a debt of gratitude.”