US military aircraft began an air exercise in the Nicosia Flight Information Region on Tuesday, at a time of heightened tension in the Middle East, Cypriot authorities said.
A NOTAM issued by the Republic of Cyprus reserves the exercise area from 5,000 to 50,000 feet each morning from Tuesday through Friday, between 7:30 and 10:30 a.m.
Two US destroyers equipped with missile‑defense and anti‑air capabilities are also operating in the same area. Additional naval units, including French and German frigates, have been detected within Cyprus’ area of responsibility.
Turkey is closely monitoring the activity, Defence Minister Yasar Güler said, repeating Ankara’s criticism of growing cooperation among Greece, Cyprus and Israel.
Güler said recent statements from Israel targeting Turkey, and rhetoric that could escalate tensions, “have no basis in reality on the ground or in international law and therefore have no value in our eyes.”
Ahead of an expected meeting between President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, the opposition newspaper Sözcü claimed in a front‑page report that Greece is “gradually taking over the Mediterranean” with “full support from the United States.”
According to ANT1, the paper also highlighted the presence of US energy companies Chevron and ExxonMobil in Greece’s Exclusive Economic Zone.