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Island in the Mediterranean Sea, south of Turkey. Capital: Nicosia. Turkish Cypriot areas include Kyrenia, all but a small part of Famagusta, and small parts of Nicosia (Lefkosia).
Received independence from the British in 1960. Divided between Greeks and Turks. UN peacekeepers arrived in 1964. In 1983, the Turkish-held area declared itself the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, which is recognized only by Turkey. Greek Cypriots control the only internationally recognized government. On May 1, 2004, the Greek controlled area, the Republic of Cyprus, joined the European Union. Every Cypriot is to have the status of a European citizen. EU laws, however, will not apply to north Cyprus. The Greek Cypriots have been trying to encourage the Turkish Cypriots to unite the island.
CIA Factbook, 2010: "The area of the Republic of Cyprus under government control has a market economy dominated by the service sector, which accounts for nearly four-fifths of GDP. Tourism, financial services, and real estate are the most important sectors. Erratic growth rates over the past decade reflect the economy's reliance on tourism, which often fluctuates with political instability in the region and economic conditions in Western Europe."
Figures unless otherwise stated are from the CIA Factbook.
2009: $21,200 (ranks 58th)
2007: $21,700
2006: $21,300
2009: -0.8%
2008: 3.6%
2007: 5.1%r
2009: 4.8%
2008: 3.6%
2009:
2009: 52.4% of GDP
The Greek sector benefits from tourism, which diminishes with eruptions of political conflict between the Greeks and Turks. The Turkish sector has been suffering from water shortages, but a few desalination plants are now online.
Living in an urban area: 70% (2008)
July 2009: 1.084 million, Growth rate: 1.69% (ranks 78th)
Density in 2005: 84.4 persons per square kilometer.
2009: 77.9 years
Living with HIV/AIDS, ages 15 to 49: 0.1 percent (2003)
SOURCES:
http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/
Copyright © 2010 by Frank E. Smitha. All rights reserved.