Cyprus has had a troubled past as the country has both Greek and Turkish heritage, with Turkey claiming part of the country as its own. Northern Cyprus, officially the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), is a de facto state that comprises the northeastern portion of the island of Cyprus, recognised only by Turkey. Cyprus has not had a national anthem because of its long-standing disagreement between the Greek-Cypriot and Turkish-Cypriot communities. Cyprus gained independence from the United Kingdom on August 16, 1960, which involved a Greek Cypriot guerrilla war against British rule. The subsequent 1960 constitution was created, but there was no inclusion or mention of an anthem, so an instrumental piece was used until 1966, when the Greek anthem was adopted by the Greek Cypriot Council of Ministers at the time. (The "Hymn to Liberty" ). A United Nations intervention with a peace plan in 2004 proposed a new and unified, wordless anthem. This was rejected by voters, leaving the Greek national anthem as the de facto but not official anthem for the Republic of Cyprus.
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