Cyprus issue in Turkish-American relations (1945-1980)

Turkish- American Relations that started as commercial activities in the East Mediterranean named as Levant, transformed into an ally in the subsequent years, especially during the Cold War Era. However this relationship became more complicated in time, occasionally had hard times of nearly detaching. There are some crucial milestones and considerable topics in the lifetime of the Turkish – American Relations. Regardless of the small area she occupied on the East Mediterranean, the intricate and long lasting disputes in Cyprus, have exceeded the point of being resolved with ease and have become one of the issues shaking the relations. In this context, the bilateral relations between 1945 and 1980 have been constituted upon the alliance but from time to time have been reshaped as crisis diplomacy for the sake of the benefits within the region. The Cyprus issue particularly has led the relationship between the two countries to be reassessed from time to time and have depicted that the USA's general politics towards the island have been more formed around the continuation of the NATO alliance and benefits. Key Words: Turkish – American Relations, Cold War, Cyprus, NATO, TRNC