History of Cyprus United Kingdom. In 1925, following the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire, Cyprus was made a Crown Colony. Between 1955 and 1959 EOKA was created by Greek Cypriots and led by George Grivas to perform enosis (union of the island with Greece). However the EOKA campaign did not result in union with Greece but rather an independent republic, The Republic of Cyprus, in 1960. The 1960 constitution put in place a form of power-sharing, or consociational government, in which concessions were made to the Turkish Cypriots minority, including as a requirement that the vice-president of Cyprus and at least 30% of
Foreign relations of Northern Cyprus stance, the TRNC refuses any official recognition of the government of the Republic of Cyprus, calling it the ""Greek Cypriot Administration of Southern Cyprus"", and referring to its President as the ""Greek Cypriot Leader"". Turkey backs this position. After the Republic of Cyprus became a member of the European Union, the southern part of the island became part of the Customs Union of EU. The Northern part of the island is excluded from the Customs Union. In spite of that, the Green Line regulations are intended to ease trade relations between North Cyprus and EU. Oil exploration in East Mediterranean