00:03This ex-post by left-wing French MEP Manon Aubry has resurfaced in recent days, generating buzz online after it
00:12was reposted and community noted.
00:14She posted a video of herself in Akrotiri, a British overseas territory in Cyprus, known alongside its sister territory, Dekalia,
00:23for their military bases.
00:24She says that their presence in Cyprus shows that part of the country is still occupied by the British army.
00:31In response, social media users attached a community note to the post, explaining that Akrotiri and Dekalia are covered by
00:38the 1960 treaty establishing Cyprus's independence.
00:42They added that this is unlike the north of the country, which the vast majority of the international community considers
00:49to be under Turkish military occupation.
00:51Here at The Cube, we spoke to experts to try to break down some of the nuances, which you can
00:56read more about on our website.
00:58They said that, ultimately, it's a complex question.
01:02Legally speaking, the UK is not occupying Cyprus because the base areas are recognised under international law, including by Cyprus
01:10itself.
01:11Some pointed out that, unlike the situation in the north, the Cypriot government oversees vast aspects of civilian daily life
01:19there.
01:19That it has good relations with the UK, and there's a lot of legislative alignment between the base areas and
01:26Cyprus.
01:27However, experts stress that the 1960 agreement establishing the territories was ultimately signed under duress,
01:34with the UK as the colonial power exerting pressure on Cyprus to agree to letting it keep the land in
01:40exchange for independence.
01:42At the end of the day, the consensus among experts appears to be that the bases are a remnant of
01:47colonialism,
01:48yet the term occupation in this case is overly simple and emotionally loaded.
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