The case relates to the situation in northern Cyprus since the invasion of that territory by Turkey in 1974 and the continuing division of the island of Cyprus. The issue at stake was the accountability of Turkey for violations of the European convention on Human Rights occurring in northern Cyprus. Cyprus contended that notwithstanding the establishment of the so-called Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus in November 1983, Turkey remained accountable under the convention on the grounds that the TRNC was an illegal entity and is not recognized by the international community. Turkey maintains that the TRNC is a democratic and constitutional state and is politically independent of all other states, including Turkey, and that allegations of human rights abuses made by Cyprus were imputable exclusively to the TRNC.