Introduction
In Cyprus, established in 1964, the National Guard (EF) is responsible for ensuring Cyprus’s territorial integrity and sovereignty; its primary focus is Turkey, which invaded Cyprus in 1974 and maintains a large military presence in the unrecognized Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus; the majority of the force is deployed along the “Green Line” that separates the Greek Cypriots from the Turkish Cypriots; the EF also participates in some internal missions, such as providing assistance during natural disasters; Greece is its main security partner and maintains about 1,000 troops on Cyprus; the EF has conducted training exercises with other militaries including France, Israel, and the US; since Cyprus joined the EU in 2004, the EF has actively participated in the EU’s Common Security and Defense Policy and has sent small numbers of personnel to some EU and missions; Cyprus is also part of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (2024)
Security and military information of Cyprus
| Military and security service personnel strengths | approximately 12-15,000 active-duty personnel (2024) |
|---|---|
| Military equipment inventories and acquisitions | the military's inventory includes a large quantity of Russian and Soviet-era weapons and equipment along with a smaller mix of mostly older Brazilian, European, Israeli, and US armaments; in 2023, Cyprus announced a 5-year modernization program to replace its Russian-made weapon systems with modern equipment from the West; the country had been under an arms embargo by the US since 1987 but the embargo was lifted in 2022 with conditions that require certifying each year (2024) |
| Military service age and obligation | Cypriot National Guard (CNG): 18-50 years of age for compulsory military service for all Greek Cypriot males; 17 years of age for voluntary service; 14-month service obligation (2023). note: the CNG accepts all foreign nationals of at least partial Cypriot descent under age 32 as volunteers; dual citizenship Cypriot origin citizens, who were born in Cyprus or abroad, have the obligation to serve in the CNG on repatriation, regardless of whether or not they possess a foreign citizenship; a person is considered as having Cypriot origin where a grandparent or parent was/is a Cypriot citizen |
| Military deployments | . |
| Military expenditures | |
| Military Expenditures 2023 | 1.8% of GDP (2023 est.) |
| Military Expenditures 2022 | 1.8% of GDP (2022) |
| Military Expenditures 2021 | 1.8% of GDP (2021) |
| Military Expenditures 2020 | 1.8% of GDP (2020) |
| Military Expenditures 2019 | 1.6% of GDP (2019) |
Terrorism
In Cyprus, the different Terrorist group(s) inlcude: Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham (ISIS)
All Important Facts about Cyprus
Want to know more about Cyprus? Check all different factbooks for Cyprus below.
