This paper presents a concise retrospective analysis of the basic aspects of the Greek-Turkish relations in Cyprus in their evolution, since 1571 (advent and establishment of the Turks in Cyprus) until nowadays, and tries to explore the roots and reasons of the Cyprus problem, as well as possible solutions to it. The article mainly examines the inter-communal level of the Cyprus issue, limiting itself, where necessary, to short remarks on the outside actors' involvement into the situation in Cyprus — that of Greece, Turkey, Great Britain, European Union, United Nations etc. Key-points of intra-Cyprus relations singled out, the author concludes that the inter-communal interaction was harmonious till the very second quarter of the XX century, and the clash was neither inevitable nor predestined. The unbridled development and maturing of national self-consciousness resulted in sliding down into the conflict, thus preventing the formation of a Cypriot — single and common, «supra-communal» — identity. The British system of administration (1878−1960) stimulated and accelerated this process but was not its origin. The armed inter-communal clash could have been avoided and was triggered by egoistical policies of the two communities, as well as by strategies of the outside powers — Great Britain, Greece, Turkey and the USA. Taking into consideration the fact that the Cyprus conflict is relatively «young» and emotionally sharp, the author lays out the principal points of the plan submitted by the UN Secretary-General K. Annan on the 11th of November, 2002, and reflects upon its prospects as well as on general strategies to follow in order to find a solution to the Cyprus problem.