Cyprus-Forum.com

[yialousa1971]

[Superstar]

Kimon,

Britain could’ve deployed another 20-30,000 soldiers to Cyprus and subdued the EOKA uprising if they really wanted to but instead they came up with the “independence for SBAs” plan in the form of the 1959 Zurich agreements, because they knew that this historic international event was coming up very soon…

http://untreaty.un.org/cod/avl/ha/dicc/dicc.html

Unfortunately, the Cypriot, Greek, and Turkish politicians were half asleep as per usual…

The main beneficries of the SBAs were the Cypriots. Akrotiri and Episkopi SBAs provide the bulk of the Limassol economy, we still visit with the family that we rented from in the 60s, they regret the day when living out married UK military personel were moved onto the bases.
There were quite a few UK military establishments within Limassol itself providing a good income for the Cypriots employed there.
The SBA police who were Cypriot maintained law and order around the SBAs.

[Get Real!]

Akrotiri and Episkopi SBAs provide the bulk of the Limassol economy,

Oh please! This is Cyprus, not some tiny Polynesian island that needs a foreign base to supplement income from basket weaving!

Limassol has 170,000 odd residents and thus a bustling economy that includes one of the Mediterranean’s busiest shipping ports with over 2,000 commercial vessels registered, so let’s not exaggerate the SBA’s contribution!