ANKARA – The delivery of Israel’s Barak MX air defense system to Cyprus poses an immediate threat to the national security of Turkey and the Turkish Cypriot administration, a senior official from Turkey’s Republican People’s Party said Saturday.
Yankı Bağcıoğlu, deputy chairman of the party, issued a written statement claiming the arrival of the system at Limassol port violates international law and undermines regional stability.
He said the Barak MX, which offers 360-degree coverage and can intercept aircraft, drones and missiles, is significantly more advanced than the Russian S-300 system that was blocked from deployment to Cyprus in 1997 due to Turkish pressure.
Bağcıoğlu warned that the system could be installed in Paphos, allowing its multifunction 3D radar to monitor air activity as far as Akzaz and İskenderun in southern Turkey. He also raised concerns that the system’s networked architecture could link with Israeli defense infrastructure, potentially transmitting sensitive data about the Eastern Mediterranean.
He said the Barak MX would reinforce Cyprus’s existing Tor-M1 and Buk M1-2 systems, turning the island into a forward-operating defense base backed by Israel, the United States and France.
Bağcıoğlu urged Ankara to launch a robust diplomatic campaign against what he called unilateral actions by the Greek Cypriot side and to assert its deterrence to preserve peace and stability in the region.