Turkish Armed Forces in Northern Cyprus The Turkish Armed Forces in Northern Cyprus officially the " Cyprus Turkish Peace Force " ( Turkish : " Kıbrıs Türk Barış Kuvvetleri " or " KTBK " ) is the Turkish military garrison on Cyprus . In 1974 Turkish troops invaded Cyprus following a Greek Cypriot coup ( organized and supported by the Greek government , which was still in the hands of a military junta ) which wanted to enforce union with Greece , occupying the northern third of the island . The invasion force , which consisted of about 40 , 000 soldiers and 200 tanks , subsequently was reduced to a garrison of 17 , 000 troops . It outnumbers the Greek military contingent on the island , which is supplemented by the Greek Cypriot National Guard of 12 , 000 active and 75 , 000 reserves . Air reinforcement of the Turkish troops can be effected , if necessary , within hours . Nevertheless , the unresolved dispute over Cyprus complicates Turkish participation in NATO and remains an obstacle to NATO ' s effectiveness in the region . History . Cyprus Turkish Brigade . Turkey maintains illegally the Cyprus Turkish Brigade ( " Kıbrıs Türk Alayı " ) in the northern part of the Republic of Cyprus . On 16 August 1960 , the brigade was organized as follows : Invasion of Cyprus . In July 1974 , Turkey landed forces on the northern part of Cyprus after the military coup of July 15 , 1974 . Turkish forces involved in operations were as follows : Post invasion . It has been on Cyprus since the Turkish invasion of 1974 , and initially consisted of the following Turkish Army units : The corps reserve was at Kythrea ( Değirmenlik ) to the northeast of Nicosia . Strength . The original force of 40 , 000 troops was reduced with Turkish authorities claiming that the Turkish force in Cyprus had been reduced to 17 , 500 in the 1990s . However , according to the UN Secretary - General " “ It is estimated that in recent years there have been in the northern part of the island a little under 30 , 000 armed forces of the Republic of Turkey ( Turkish Forces ) making it one of the most militarized areas in the world in terms of numbers of troops and numbers of civilian population . Recently moreover there have been indications that the total numbers of Turkish forces on the island may have increased ” " S994 / 680 7 . 6 . 1994 . par . 28 . Turkish forces in Cyprus are part of the Turkish Aegean Army which is headquartered at Izmir in Turkey . However , the commander of the Turkish troops reports directly to the Turkish General Staff in the capital , Ankara . The force is responsible for all security and is not directly involved in political matters of northern Cyprus . Since 16 August 1974 , the Turkish Army has retained control of the northern 37 % of Cyprus . Military Personnel in Northern Cyprus . It is not possible to give an exactly accurate number of military personnel serving in northern Cyprus , due to conflicting public sources of information . There are an estimated 30 , 000 regular troops of the Turkish Army serving in northern Cyprus at any given time are : Equipment in Northern Cyprus . This is an estimate of the inventory of military equipment in northern Cyprus due to conflicting published sources .