UK Prime Minister David Cameron faces dissenting voices domestically in his drive to secure parliamentary support for airstrikes against the militant Islamic State (IS) group in Syria.

A vote by UK MPs is expected within weeks. But little mention is made in that debate of the distant slice of British turf in Cyprus where they would be launched.

Taking off from RAF Akrotiri, on the south coast of Cyprus and 112km (70 miles) west of Syria, would indirectly involve the island in the conflict.

But while most Cypriots regard Britain's two sovereign military bases as an anachronism, Cyprus views IS as a threat and backs Mr Cameron's plans.

'Barbarous'

"We're in the same strategic boat," says Euripides Evriviades, Cyprus's high commissioner in London.

Tornado bombers have already been conducting combat operations against IS in Iraq since September last year.

Cyprus made clear its support for British military action last week. Ioannis Kasoulides, the French-educated foreign minister, said IS's "abominable" attacks in Paris had only strengthened Cyprus's "determination" to help eliminate the "barbarous" organisation.

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'Colonial bloodstains'

Cyprus's Soviet-educated communist former President, Demetris Christofias, once described the British bases as "colonial bloodstains".

Covering 157 sq km of territory, Akrotiri and Dhekelia were retained by Britain when the island won independence in 1960.

Many accuse Britain of a "divide and rule" policy in the 1950s, saying this sowed the seeds of the Cyprus problem.

But Cyprus's long, close and complex relationship with its old colonial master improved remarkably when Mr Christofias was succeeded by Nicos Anastasiades, a London-educated conservative, in early 2013.

He swiftly re-oriented Cyprus's foreign policy, bringing it closer to the West while maintaining good relations with Russia.

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Co-operating with its Western allies against IS allows Cyprus to showcase its geo-strategic value as a safe haven and reliable partner on the EU's south-eastern frontier.

"It's all about location, location, location," says Klearchos Kyriakides, a lecturer at the University of Central Lancashire's Cyprus campus.

And Cyprus did not object when Britain offered France the use of RAF Akrotiri last week to help refuel French fighters and serve as a reserve diversion airfield for jets operating from a French aircraft carrier.

"Cyprus's contribution to security and stability in the region, by virtue also of its EU membership, goes far beyond the geographical confines of the country," says High Commissioner Evriviades.

However. there will be no direct French strikes from the British airbase.

Playing 'Empire'

Cyprus itself offered France the use of an airbase near Paphos last year for humanitarian and support missions in Iraq. The foreign minister hinted last week that any French request to use the base for military operations in Syria would also be viewed favourably.

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Given the fear and loathing of IS in Cyprus, there has been negligible public opposition to the government's support for British military action and little debate about a possible Islamist backlash.

Misgivings do, however, sometimes surface in feedback on newspaper websites. "It's one thing welcoming the British people on our island; it's totally another to allow the UK to play 'Empire' in the 21st Century," said one Cyprus Mail reader.

Under the 1960 arrangements, Britain does not appear to require Cypriot consent on how its bases are used. But "we work on a no-surprise basis and enjoy excellent co-operation with the Republic of Cyprus", says a British bases spokesman.

Acting against popular or political sentiment in Cyprus would be embarrassing for Britain which would run the risk of appearing like a colonial overlord - and of possibly provoking demonstrations.

When British bombers began targeting IS in Iraq from RAF Akrotiri last autumn, it was the first time Cyprus had been used as a strike base since the 1956 Suez crisis, when the island was still a British colony.