The European Lawyers for Democracy and Human Rights and the Cyprus Democratic Lawyers Association have called for an end to British claims over the military bases at Akrotiri and Dhekelia, describing them as “a colonial remnant, a democratic insult and a direct attack on the sovereignty of the Cypriot people”.
In the statement, the two organisations said Cyprus remained only partly decolonised more than 60 years after formal independence. They argued that the bases were imposed in 1960 as the price of independence, allowing the former colonial power to retain control over part of Cypriot territory for military and strategic purposes.
The statement rejected what it called Britain’s claim that Akrotiri and Dhekelia constitute sovereign British territory. It argued that the arrangement was imposed at the moment of independence under conditions of inequality and coercion and could not be presented as the product of free and genuine consent.
The organisations said international law was clear on the issue, referring to United Nations General Assembly Resolution 1514 of 1960 on decolonisation, which they said bars the disruption of the territorial integrity of a colonial territory during the decolonisation process.
They also cited the International Court of Justice’s 2019 advisory opinion on the Chagos Archipelago, in which the court found that the decolonisation of Mauritius had not been lawfully completed after the archipelago was detached in 1965 and said Britain was under an obligation to end its administration of the territory.
According to the statement, the same principle applies to Cyprus. The two organisations said the British bases were not an expression of lawful sovereignty but a continuation of colonial rule under another name, fragmenting Cyprus’ territorial integrity and exposing the island to risks by turning it into a platform for foreign military operations.
They further argued that the use of the bases for military operations by third states, including the United States, or for actions that could be characterised as unlawful self-defence, could draw Cyprus into conflicts and endanger its territorial integrity. The statement also referred to the ICJ’s 2024 advisory opinion on Israel’s policies and practices in the occupied Palestinian territory, saying third states must not provide aid or assistance to maintain a situation that breaches international law.
The organisations said the issue of the bases was therefore one of international law, decolonisation and the effective protection of the rights of the Cypriot people. They said Cyprus had every right to challenge the colonial arrangement in international forums, invoke the principles confirmed in the Mauritius case and demand full decolonisation.
They called for an end to British claims over Akrotiri and Dhekelia, the abolition of all colonial privileges and the return of every part of Cypriot territory to the Cypriot people.
They also called on the Cypriot government to end what they described as its tolerance of the British military bases and to clarify with the British government the steps needed for their removal.