Shaping territorial solutions to the Cyprus conflict: the role of international organizations

Abstract

This article offers a comprehensive assessment of territorial solutions for ethnic conflicts, with a specific focus on Cyprus. Despite its prominence, scholarly study has not adequately explored the complexities of territoriality as exhibited in the Cyprus conflict. To address such a gap, this study tackles the territorial dimension of the Cyprus problem from a unique perspective: the potential effects of international organizations acting as agents of socialization on the two community leadership. Despite the acceptance of bizonal, bicommunal federal state, which have become permanent UN parameters as a basis for the settlement, the Greek Cypriot side insisted on 'loose bizonality' suggesting ethnically mixed regions, whereas the Turkish Cypriot side demanded a 'monolithic bizonality' amounted to ethnic segregation. There are indications, however, that the UN, the EU, and the international judiciary support' pluralistic bizonality', as an alternative to 'lose' or 'monolithic' bizonality encouraging revisions in territorial approaches of the two sides.