The Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) will overcome all embargoes imposed on this land for decades and open up to the globe in the Century of Türkiye, Turkish Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz said Monday on his first visit after taking office last month.
“Settling the Cyprus issue with a fair, permanent and sustainable solution that will guarantee the security and legitimate rights of Turkish Cypriots is a top priority for Türkiye,” Yılmaz told reporters alongside Turkish Cyprus President Ersin Tatar following a one-on-one meeting in the capital Lefkoşa (Nicosia).
He and Tatar reportedly had a “very productive” meeting where they dissected shared issues and discussed steps to take in cooperation for the development of Northern Cyprus, its struggle for recognition and initiatives in the Eastern Mediterranean and Varosha (Maraş).
Varosha is a disputed area along the island’s northeastern coast that virtually became a ghost town in 1984 during the struggle between the north and the south. A portion of it, about 3.5% of its total area, reopened in October 2020 and attracted over 1 million visitors since.
The TRNC entirely broke away from the south and declared independence in 1983 after a coup aimed at Greece’s annexation of the island led to Türkiye’s military intervention, dubbed Cyprus Peace Operation, as a guarantor power to protect Turkish Cypriots from persecution and violence.
An international embargo against Turkish Cyprus is currently in place in several areas that allow access to international communications, postal services and transport only through Türkiye.
Turkish Cyprus has been resolute in demanding a two-state solution that would ensure international recognition and equal sovereignty and status, something the Greek Cypriots reject out of hand.
The island has seen an on-and-off peace process in recent years. U.N.-backed reunification talks have been in limbo since the last round collapsed at Crans-Montana, Switzerland, in July 2017 between guarantor countries Türkiye, Greece and the U.K.
The Greek Cypriot administration joined the European Union in 2004, the same year Greek Cypriots thwarted a U.N. plan to end the longstanding dispute.
Today, the Turkish side supports a solution based on the equal sovereignty of the two states on the island. On the other hand, the Greek side wants a federal solution based on the hegemony of the Greeks.
Türkiye, which has the longest continental coastline in the Eastern Mediterranean, has rejected maritime boundary claims by Greece and the Greek Cypriot administration, stressing that their excessive claims violate the sovereign rights of Türkiye and the Turkish Cypriots.
U.N. chief Antonio Guterres in his last report on the issue expressed concerns over the “ongoing militarization of the cease-fire lines” and a political climate marked by “significant hardening of positions” on both sides.
Newly-appointed Yılmaz on Monday assured his office would “never separate between the problems of Turkish Cypriots and the people of Türkiye.”
“Indeed, we will overcome all problems of Turkish Cypriots who have faced unfair embargoes for nearly 50 years together,” he said. “Such periods that may be too much for an individual’s lifetime are not so long in the history of a nation. We will go through these periods patiently and together if we must achieve national goals.”
Efforts are underway to ensure the TRNC soon takes its “rightful place in the international arena in line with international law as a sovereign state and nation," Yılmaz said.
He hailed the TRNC’s admission to the Organization of Turkic States (OTS) as an observer state last year as “a valuable step that shows Türkiye’s attitude on a two-state solution.”
“I believe the TRNC will advance a lot more in military, politics, economy and sociology. Türkiye will continue supporting Turkish Cypriots with all its means,” he noted.
Türkiye and Turkish Cyprus continue working to take the latter’s advance further and bolster its foundations, Yılmaz added, referring to the infrastructure project that will extend a power line from mainland Türkiye to the island struggling with electricity shortages.
Türkiye also has an underwater pipeline that supplies freshwater to Turkish Cypriots.
Yılmaz further reiterated that a solution process with Greek Cyprus would only be possible on the condition of TRNC’s recognition.
“A solution can only be built on facts, which would contribute to regional stability and prosperity,” he added. “Everyone would win in that scenario and those insisting on a deadlock are only harming both Turkish Cypriots and everyone else living in the region.”
“Türkiye will always respond to one-sided actions that negate the rights of Turkish Cypriots despite all the constructive good faith the Turkish side shows,” he underscored.
Yılmaz urged the EU not to “insist on its carelessness of considering Turkish Cypriots a minority” and argued that the bloc was violating its fundamental principles by having admitted Greek Cyprus as a member despite it being a “disputed nation.”
He slammed the EU for “unfairly providing Greek Cyprus with an IPA (Instrument for Pre-accession Assistance) funds and called for the bloc to adopt a “more just stance.”
The Turkish side has never been the one who left the negotiating table, Yılmaz said. “We are always open for a two-state solution but we are also determined to protect the legitimate rights and interests of Turkish Cyprus and our country in the Eastern Mediterranean.”
