Akrotiri and Dhekelia ( ), officially the Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia (SBAs), is a British Overseas Territory that consists of two separate areas on the island of Cyprus. The areas, which include British military bases and installations that were formerly part of the Crown colony of Cyprus, were retained by the British under the 1960 treaty of independence signed by the United Kingdom, Greece, Turkey, the president of Cyprus and the representative of the Turkish Cypriot community.
British Forces Cyprus are stationed on this territory, including Ayios Nikolaos Station for signals intelligence.
Despite being under British control, Akrotiri and Dhekelia are integrated with the surrounding Cypriot communities and economies. The areas are notable for their strategic geopolitical value and rich environmental features, including the Akrotiri Salt Lake, a protected wetland. Education, policing, and healthcare services are provided in coordination with the Republic of Cyprus. The SBAs also play a significant role in intelligence and communications operations across the Eastern Mediterranean. Although not part of the European Union post-Brexit, the areas continue to be governed by protocols that align with certain EU laws to avoid disrupting the daily lives of residents.
History
The Sovereign Base Areas were created in 1960 by the London and Zürich Agreements, when Cyprus achieved independence from the British Empire, as recorded by the United Nations in 1960 as treaty 5476. The United Kingdom desired to retain sovereignty over these areas, as this guaranteed the use of UK military bases on Cyprus, including Royal Air Force (RAF) Akrotiri, and a garrison of the British Army. The importance of the bases to the British is based on the strategic location of the island, at the eastern edge of the Mediterranean, close to the Suez Canal and the Middle East; the ability to use the RAF base as staging post for military aircraft; and for training.
In July and August 1961, there were a series of bomb attacks against the pipeline carrying fresh water to the Dhekelia Sovereign Base Area."Cyprus Base Pipe Again Broken." Times [London, England] 2 August 1961: 10. The Times Digital Archive. Web. 29 December 2017 The pipeline was breached by explosions twelve times.OUR CORRESPONDENT. "Another Attack On Cyprus Pipeline." Times [London, England] 8 August 1961: 6. The Times Digital Archive. Web. 29 December 2017.
In the early 1970s, the United States built an over-the-horizon radar named Cobra Shoe, which could observe aeroplane operations and missile tests in southern Russia. This was operated by the RAF on behalf of the U.S. Air Force. This augmented an earlier British system built in the early 1960s named Project Sandra. The American use of the base was hidden from the Cypriot government due to sensitivities between governments.
In July 1974, following a military coup by the Cypriot National Guard, Turkey invaded the north of Cyprus, leading to the establishment of the internationally unrecognized Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. This did not affect the status of the bases. Greek Cypriots fleeing from the Turkish forces were permitted to travel through the Dhekelia Sovereign Base Area and were given humanitarian aid, with those from Achna setting up a new village (Dasaki Achnas or Achna Forest) which is still in the Dhekelia Sovereign Base Area.
The Turkish advance halted when it reached the edge of the Dhekelia Sovereign Base Area to avoid military conflict with the United Kingdom. In the Akrotiri Sovereign Base Area a tented refugee camp was set up at "Happy Valley", part of the Episkopi Cantonment,See UN photos of the refugee tents, and an account of the camp on the RAF Akrotiri website to house Turkish Cypriots fleeing from Limassol and the villages surrounding the Area. In 1975, they were flown out of RAF Akrotiri via Turkey to northern Cyprus. Some Greek Cypriot refugees remain housed on land in the parts of TrachoniSee PRIO Centre report on Trachoni , and figures for housing units on Trachoni Village website and KolossiSee PRIO Centre report on Kolossi , villages that fall within the Akrotiri Sovereign Base Area.See Motor Vehicles and Road Traffic (Motorway and Speed Limits) Order 2008 for grid refs and street names for Trachoni, Kolossi and Achna Forest refugee settlements
As a result of the Turkish invasion, the British Government reinforced its military presence in the Sovereign Base Areas on Cyprus. While some reports suggest that prior to the invasion, the Government was looking to reduce Britain's presence on the island, following the invasion that proved to be strategically difficult. Hence the British military presence remained on the island for the next fifty years.
On 1 March 2026, as part of the 2026 Iran war, the base at Akrotiri was subject to a drone strike. The Ministry of Defence afterwards confirmed the drone was not launched from Iran. This preceded British Prime Minister Keir Starmer granting permission for U.S. forces to use the bases in the strikes. No casualties were reported and only minor damage was sustained on the base's runway. On 2 March, two further drones were intercepted by RAF forces near the island. British authorities decided to evacuate both the Akrotiri and Dhekelia bases as a result of the attacks, prompting the Cypriot government to instruct an evacuation of Akrotiri village itself. Following the attacks, the U.K. Government announced that British forces on the island would be reinforced, with additional fighter aircraft and Wildcat helicopters (equipped with anti-drone-capable Martlet missiles), in order to better protect British installations from attack. Additionally, the U.K. Royal Navy would deploy the air defence destroyer HMS Dragon to the region.
Following multiple offensive airstrikes by Iran on Cyprus during the 2026 Iran War, the Hellenic Navy deployed advanced FDI HN frigate Kimon and a MEKO-class frigate, Psara, to the Eastern Mediterranean.
Politics Current status The territory comprises two base areas. One is Akrotiri Cantonment ( ; ), or the Western Sovereign Base Area (WSBA), which includes two main bases at RAF Akrotiri and Episkopi Cantonment, plus all of Akrotiri village's district, including Limassol Salt Lake, and parts of eleven other village districts.See map at Akrotiri Area Office page on SBA Administration website
The other area is Dhekelia Cantonment ( ; ), or the Eastern Sovereign Base Area (ESBA), which includes a base at Ayios Nikolaos plus parts of twelve village districts.See map at Dhekelia Area Office page on SBA Administration website
As of 2026, based units include:
Akrotiri Cantonment (including RAF Akrotiri and Episkopi Cantonment): No. 903 Expeditionary Air Wing RAF No. 84 Squadron RAF 1st Battalion, Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment Cyprus Operations Support Unit Cyprus Military Working Dog Troop Cyprus Joint Police Unit (CJPU) Dhekelia Cantonment 4th Battalion, Royal Regiment of Scotland Joint Service Adventure Training Centre
The Joint Service Signal Unit (Cyprus) is located at Ayios Nikolaos Station, in the ESBA. Ayios Nikolaus Station is an ELINT (electronic intelligence) listening installation of the UKUSA Agreement intelligence network.Jeffrey Richelson & Desmond Ball, The Ties the Bind: Intelligence Cooperation between the UKUSA Countries, Unwin Hyman, Boston/London and others, 1990, p.194 note 145. The UKUSA signals intelligence system is sometimes known as "ECHELON".
Governance
The sovereign bases were retained in 1960 to keep military bases in areas under British sovereignty, along with the rights retained to use other sites in what became the territory of the Republic. That makes them different from the other British Overseas Territories.
The basic philosophy of their administration was declared by the British government in Appendix O to the 1960 treaty with Cyprus, which provided that the British government intended:
Not to develop the Sovereign Base Areas for other than military purposes. Not to set up and administer "colonies". Not to create customs posts or other frontier barriers between the Sovereign Base Areas and the Republic. Not to set up or permit the establishment of civilian commercial or industrial enterprises except insofar as these are connected with military requirements, and not otherwise to impair the economic, commercial or industrial unity and life of the Island. Not to establish commercial or civilian seaports or airports. Not to allow new settlement of people in the Sovereign Base Areas other than for temporary purposes. Not to expropriate private property within the Sovereign Base Areas except for military purposes on payment of fair compensation.
Appendix O also provides that various ancient monuments in the SBAs (in particular the site and remains of Kourion, the Sanctuary of Apollo Hylates near Kourion, the Stadium of Curium and the Church and remains of the Holy Monastery of St Nicholas of the Cats) should be administered by the Republic of Cyprus. The Cypriot government issues licences for antiquity excavation in the SBAs subject to British consent, and any movable antiquities found in excavations or otherwise discovered become Cypriot state property.Treaty of Establishment, 1960, p.111-112, p.116
According to the British Ministry of Defence:
The territory is administered by an Administrator, who is also the Commander of British Forces Cyprus, which is Major General Tom Bewick. The Administrator is officially appointed by the British monarch on the advice of the Ministry of Defence. The Administrator has all the executive and legislative authority of a governor of an overseas territory.
A Chief Officer is appointed, and is responsible to the Administrator for the day-to-day running of the civil government, with subordinate Area Officers responsible for the civil administration of the two areas. No elections are held in the territory. British citizens are normally entitled to vote in United Kingdom elections, as British Forces or overseas electors.
The areas have their own legal system, distinct from the United Kingdom and the Republic of Cyprus. This consists of the laws of the Colony of Cyprus as of August 1960, amended as necessary. The laws of Akrotiri and Dhekelia are closely aligned with, and in some cases identical to, the laws operating within the Republic of Cyprus. The Court of the Sovereign Base Areas is concerned with non-military offences committed by any person within Akrotiri and Dhekelia.
Law and order is maintained by the Sovereign Base Areas Police. Offences involving British Forces Cyprus and military law are dealt with by the Cyprus Joint Police Unit. Fire and rescue services are provided by the Defence Fire and Risk Management Organisation through stations at Episkopi, Akrotiri, Dhekelia and Ayios Nikolayos. The Defence Medical Services provide emergency ambulance cover based from medical centres in the main bases. All emergency services are accessible from any telephone using the Europe-wide emergency number 112.
Reviews In January 2010, a British press article claimed that as a result of budgetary constraints arising from the Great Recession, the British Ministry of Defence drew up controversial plans to withdraw the United Kingdom's 3,000-strong garrison and end the use of Cyprus as a staging point for ground forces. The Labour government, under whom the proposal appeared, was replaced by the Cameron–Clegg coalition whose defence review did not mention the issue.
On 15 December 2012, in a written statement to the House of Commons, the UK's Secretary of State for Defence, Philip Hammond, revealed the findings of a report on the SBA military bases following the completion of a review of their operations by Lord Ashcroft:
Dispute and controversies