“Cyprus puzzle” could not be made out without putting all the related parts together. Thus in the basis of British and American strategies towards the Eastern Mediterranean and Cyprus Island, national interests, which encircle their global hegemony challenges play the most noteworthy role. Besides, there are remarkable issues happening around the island apart from the main dispute between Turkish and Greek Cypriots of the island, known as “Cyprus Question”. New natural gas berths discovered under the seabed drew the eyes of the regional states as well as global powers such as the Unites States of America, the United Kingdom (UK), the Russian Federation, and European Union towards the waters around the island. Natural energy resources are essential and infact vital for every society and state on earth. Apart from this fact, regional states of the Eastern-Med attempted quickly for seeking ways to delimitate maritime areas of the Eastern-Med in line with the arrangements of the law of the sea. However, there is a very-far, but in fact a so-close hegemon in the Eastern-Med region as if a next-door neighbour. This is the UK, which could easily claim rights on the maritime jurisdiction areas around the island since the UK has two sovereign bases located in the southern part of Cyprus. In this respect, this study has been designed to focus on the Sovereign British Bases on Cyprus, their global connections, and their impacts on the Eastern Mediterranean maritime jurisdiction areas conflict, that is believed to be one of the most prominent, but (un)intentionally overshadowed piece of the Cyprus puzzle.

Eastern Mediterranean, Cyprus, Maritime Delimitations, Sovereign British Bases, Law of the Sea, Global Interests and Challenges

Gökhan Ak