Today in History – 27/28 June

The British formula and the division of the Island

Following his visit to President Johnson in the U.S., İnönü stopped in London in the morning of June 27, 1964 and met with British Prime Minister Sir Alec Douglas Home. Home asked İnönü what Turkey would demand in exchange if Cyprus were given to Greece. In response to this unexpected question, İnönü replied, “Whose land are you giving to whom?”

The British Government had conjured up new ideas on the future of Cyprus following the intensifying Greek attacks in 1963. Based on the notion that the coexistence of the two groups on the island was difficult, if not impossible, the British formulas foresaw the reorganization of the Republic of Cyprus in light of its physical separation. In other words, the idea was the division of the island.