United States expands military bases in Cyprus

The United States is expanding two military installations in Cyprus to increase regional combat capacity. The Evangelos Florakis naval base in Mari-Tatlısu will receive 205 million euros in investment, enabling it to accommodate up to eight warships simultaneously. New landing pads financed by the US European Command will also be constructed to support Chinook-type helicopters.

Additionally, the Andreas Papandreou air base in Paphos is being upgraded using 1.2 billion euros from the European Union's SAFE fund. This expansion will allow the base to station up to 16 fighter jets and C-130 heavy transport aircraft. These facilities are expected to host military assets from various nations, including the US, Greece, Israel, and France.

In a separate regional development, Greece has introduced new unmanned surface vehicles (USVs) at the Skaramangas Naval Base. These vehicles are designed for intelligence gathering, surveillance, and kamikaze-style attacks using explosives. The Greek government has named the craft ‘Kundakçı’, a reference to historical maritime tactics used during the 1821 Greek uprising.