Ankara, Turkey. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Turkey would not abandon Turkish Cypriots and would continue defending what it considers their rights in the Levant, as United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres concluded meetings in Cyprus on advancing the peace process.
Speaking after a cabinet meeting on Wednesday, Erdogan said Ankara was closely monitoring developments concerning Cyprus and opposed initiatives that it considers to exclude the Turkish Cypriot side.
Turkey’s position
Erdogan said Turkey was watching steps by what he described as circles seeking to incorporate Cyprus into new military structures and geopolitical calculations, in an apparent reference to growing military cooperation involving Cyprus, Greece and Israel.
He reiterated Ankara’s position that future negotiations on the Cyprus issue must recognise what Turkey describes as the sovereign equality of Turkish Cypriots.
Erdogan said no initiative that ignores the sovereign equality, rights and legitimate interests of Turkish Cypriots in the eastern Mediterranean could succeed.
He also repeated Turkey’s commitment to supporting the Turkish Cypriot community, saying Ankara would not allow them to relive past suffering.
Erdogan described Turkey’s role on the island as a matter of national security, indicating that Ankara did not intend to change its position despite renewed diplomatic efforts led by the United Nations.
UN consultations
His remarks came hours after Guterres completed meetings with President Nikos Christodoulides and Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhurman.
Guterres said he planned to convene a new enlarged meeting on Cyprus once sufficient progress had been made on confidence-building measures and preparations for renewed negotiations.
Infrastructure plans
Erdogan also referred to planned infrastructure projects, confirming Turkey’s intention to proceed with an undersea natural gas pipeline to the north.
