近代以来，海外军事基地是英国遏制潜在敌人、维护地区平衡和谋求全球霸权的重要筹码。20世纪50～70年代，由于国力渐衰，英国相继关闭了在埃及、伊拉克、利比亚、也门、海湾地区和东南亚的军事基地，但英国在塞浦路斯的军事基地延续至今，经受了美苏冷战、美国全球反恐战争和“阿拉伯革命”等国际重大事件的考验。英国在塞浦路斯的军事基地是英国向地中海和中东地区投射军事力量的重要“桥头堡”，是英国维护海外利益、遏制地区安全威胁的前沿阵地，这是英国长期在塞浦路斯部署军事基地的政治条件；英国在塞浦路斯的军事基地又是近代英国海外殖民统治的遗产，基于双方签订的《军事基地协定》，属于主权基地即“硬基地”范畴，这是英国长期驻军的法律条件。政治条件和法律条件决定了未来英国在塞浦路斯的军事基地尽管面临“基地政治化”的挑战，但仍将延续下去。
Overseas Military bases are essential tools for the British to deter potential enemies，maintain regional balance，and seek global hegemony. Since the 1950s，due to the relative decline of its national strength，British government had to close these bases in Iraq，Libya，Egypt，the Persian Gulf，Aden，Yemen and Southeast Asia，but the bases in Cyprus have remained intact. The two bases in Cyprus have witnessed the great vicissitudes of the Cold War，US global war on terrorism，and the Arab Revolution，respectively. On one hand，in terms of political conditions，the British military bases in Cyprus are the crucial beachheads to project British military power in the Mediterranean and the Middle East，and they serve as essential platforms for the British to safeguard their overseas interests，and deter regional threat. On the other hand，in terms of legal conditions，the two bases in Cyprus are the legacies of British colonial rule，which are by nature hard bases，based on a military base agreement concerned. The political and legal conditions determine that the British military bases in Cyprus will exist in the foreseeable future，albeit they are confronted with challenges of base’s politicalization.
