Erdogan: a solution must ensure there is no tension

TURKISH Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said yesterday it was important to reach a long-lasting solution in Cyprus that would not cause any incidents or tension in the future.

Erdogan, who arrived in the occupied north early yesterday to attend events marking the 20th anniversary of the declaration of the breakaway Turkish Cypriot state, had to alter his schedule after the two bomb explosions in Istanbul that killed more than 20 people and injured hundreds.
He flew direct to Istanbul yesterday evening rather than returning to Ankara.

Speaking at a joint news conference in occupied Nicosia with Turkish Cypriot leader Rauf Denktash, Erdogan said there had been “tranquillity and stability on Cyprus for 29 years” since 1974.

He said he and Denktash has discussed the Cyprus issue in depth, and that while the Turkish side is ready to accept the good offices mission of the UN Secretary-general it does not mean they will accept the tag of ‘pseudostate’ to describe the ‘TRNC’.

“It is an honour for us that the TRNC has stood on its feet for 20 years,” he said. “There has been tranquillity and stability on Cyprus for 29 years, and the elements of a lasting solution are preservation of security, equal status and political equality of Turkish Cypriots and maintenance of a bi-zonal structure.

“The solution should be made on the basis of a new partnership, taking into consideration Turkish-Greek balance,” Erdogan said. “What is important is to reach a lasting solution which will not cause any new incidents and tension. Reaching a solution whatever its cost is not possible.”

Denktash said that for the Turkish Cypriot side the Cyprus problem was a “national and sacred affair”, and he repeated that he hoped a solution would be found “on the basis of two equal sovereignties”.

Erdogan also said the ‘TRNC’ has been subjected to “unjust obstructions”.
“We are face to face with embargoes and these embargoes should be lifted,” he added. “May you be in peace and security. The TRNC and Turkish Cypriot people will always find Turkey beside them, whatever the conditions.”

The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.