The secretary-general of the Organization of Turkic States (OTS) said on Friday that admitting the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) as an observer member in the OTS was an important step in bringing the Turkic states even closer.
"Our Turkish Cypriot brothers became observer members of OTS at this summit. I hope all our brothers in the Turkic world will be from very big and powerful countries in the world together," Kubanıçbek Ömuraliyev said, referring to the ninth OTS summit held in Samarkand, in which he was appointed as secretary-general on Nov. 11.
Ömuraliyev, who also serves as Kyrgyzstan's ambassador to Türkiye, evaluated the recent summit and developments while speaking to Anadolu Agency (AA).
Noting that important decisions were agreed on at the Samarkand summit, Ömuraliyev stated that revisions were made to the Nakhchivan Agreement, which was the founding document of the OTS, previously known as the Turkic Council, highlighting that the 2022-2026 strategy was approved within the scope of the organization's 2040 vision.
Stating that the city of Samarkand was declared the "Capital of Turkic Civilization," Ömuraliyev also highlighted that the TRNC was accepted as an observer member of the OTS.
"Turkish Cypriots are an integral part of the Turkic world. As with our other full and observer countries, we will continue to work with the TRNC for peace, stability and development, both in our region and globally," Ömuraliyev stated.
The TRNC has become a non-member observer state to the OTS, Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu announced recently. Following the decision, there were protests from both the European Union and the United States.
Türkiye rejected an EU statement in which the bloc expressed concerns about the admission. Meanwhile, the TRNC president's office in a statement said the EU has once again shown its biased approach.
The EU statement's aim is to isolate the Turkish Cypriots from the world and attach them with the Greek Cypriots under the guise of a federation, it added.
Also, Türkiye has ramped up the criticism of its NATO ally United States for abandoning a balanced policy and escalating tensions surrounding the issues of Cyprus and the Eastern Mediterranean, reiterating that it will protect its rights and interests against the Greek side.
Türkiye has on numerous occasions invited its NATO ally United States to adopt a neutral stance on the Cyprus issue.
This is the first time the TRNC is being represented in an international organization with its constitutional name.
The TRNC is also an observer member in the Economic Cooperation Organization and Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) as well as the International Organization of Turkic Culture (TÜRKSOY). The country is represented in 18 countries with 25 representations, including Germany, the United States and Pakistan.