Cyprus closer than ever to joining Schengen but political hurdles relating to the Green Line and British Sovereign Base Areas remain

Together with Ireland, Cyprus is currently the only member of the European Union not to be part of Europe's border-free travel zone.

After years of preparations and the implementation of 120 technical recommendations, Nicosia received a positive assessment from the European Commission in July, confirming its technical readiness.

The recommendations, issued as part of EU evaluations dating back to 2021, covered areas including border controls, visa policy, access to European security databases and police cooperation. Their implementation required technological upgrades as well as legislative and administrative reforms.

On October 1, Cyprus's Deputy Minister for Migration and International Protection, Nicholas Ioannides, confirmed that "all recommendations made by the European Commission are now considered to have been implemented."

According to Ioannides, Cyprus is technically ready to join Schengen, with the next step being to secure the necessary political agreement.

Austria, the Netherlands informally express reservations

However, a positive technical assessment alone is not enough for Cyprus to join the Schengen Area.

Accession requires a unanimous decision by the EU Council following consultation with the European Parliament.

According to information obtained by DW, Austria and the Netherlands have already informally expressed reservations over security concerns linked to the Green Line, which divides the island of Cyprus, and the special status of the British Sovereign Base Areas.

Although neither country has officially threatened to veto Cyprus's accession, their reservations carry particular weight.

Both Austria and the Netherlands have previously raised objections to the expansion of the Schengen Area to Bulgaria and Romania.

What is the Green Line?

Perhaps the most significant obstacle is the Green Line, the approximately 180-kilometer-long ceasefire line that has divided Cyprus since Turkey's military intervention in 1974.

It separates the areas controlled by the internationally recognized Republic of Cyprus from the Turkish-controlled northern part of the island.

The buffer zone is monitored by the United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP), while the Green Line itself is not an internationally recognized state border.

Crossings between the two sides take place at nine designated crossing points and are governed by a special EU regulation.

This unique arrangement poses a challenge to Schengen membership, as the Republic of Cyprus does not exercise effective control along the entire length of the line. At the same time, Nicosia rejects any arrangement that could turn the Green Line into an external border, either legally or even symbolically.

Dr. Nasia Hadjigeorgiou, associate professor of Transitional Justice and Human Rights at the School of Law of UCLan Cyprus, explains: "The issue raised by some Schengen countries is that the Republic of Cyprus does not control the entire Green Line. It may control the crossing points, but there are also open stretches of land," she told DW.

"For it to be considered to have full control, something would have to change. Either the Cyprus problem would have to be resolved, or a strictly controlled physical border would have to be established. There is no other way," said Hadjigeorgiou.

Why are the British Sovereign Base Areas an issue?

Another obstacle to Cyprus's Schengen ambitions is the presence of the British Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia, which remained under UK sovereignty when Cyprus gained independence in 1960.

Together, the two areas cover 254 square kilometers, almost 3% of the island, and remain British sovereign territory.

The main complication concerns the Dhekelia base area, which borders both the territory controlled by the Republic of Cyprus and the self-declared Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, which is not internationally recognized.

Two crossing points, at Pergamos and Strovilia, are located in this area, where checks are carried out by British authorities. The UK is no longer a member of the European Union.

Dr. Nasia Hadjigeorgiou explains the difficulties arising from this unusual arrangement: "This is problematic because the area in question is controlled on one side by the authorities in the occupied north and on the other by the British Sovereign Base Areas. As a result, the United Kingdom would be controlling who enters and leaves the Schengen Area. This is an unusual situation, since it is normally the Schengen member states themselves that decide who can enter and leave the area."

According to information obtained by DW, Nicosia and the British Sovereign Base Areas have already begun discussions on upgrading border control procedures at Pergamos and Strovilia to bring them into line with EU requirements.

Political negotiations

In the meantime, Nicosia has stepped up its diplomatic efforts to secure the necessary consensus.

Deputy Minister for Migration Nicholas Ioannides held bilateral meetings with his counterparts from Austria, the Netherlands and Finland on October 1 on the sidelines of the EU Justice and Home Affairs Council meeting in Luxembourg. Cyprus's accession to Schengen was among the issues discussed.

Cyprus also secured significant political backing on October 7 during the summit of the nine Mediterranean EU member states (MED9) in Croatia.

In their joint declaration, the leaders welcomed the European Commission's positive assessment and called for the timely completion of Cyprus's accession process.

Nevertheless, diplomatic sources speaking to DW on condition of anonymity cautioned that despite the positive signals, Cyprus's entry into the Schengen Area should by no means be taken for granted.

The same sources consider it highly likely that the EU may choose to wait for the outcome of the ongoing efforts to resolve the Cyprus problem before making a decision that could create additional political and practical complications.