Akıncı: “As Turkish Cypriots, we have only one harbour to shelter and this is Turkey”
President Akıncı gave an interview with Anadolu Agency, in which he discussed the tripartite meeting held in New York with the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and the Greek Cypriot Leader Nikos Anastasiades, and reiterated that, “As Turkish Cypriots, we have only one harbour to shelter and this is Turkey.”
Stating that the security of the Turkish Cypriots and the system to be established should be under a guarantee, Akıncı noted: “A bi-zonal federal state is being mentioned and one of them will be the Turkish Cypriot Founding State with a separate police organisation – which has not previously existed. There was a mixed police organisation that included some Turkish Cypriot police personnel. Now, we will have separate associations, court, assembly and government.”
President Akıncı continued, “In 1963, 13 articles of the constitution were changed unilaterally. Turkish Cypriots were excluded from that structure. The partnership state was turned into one state and became the government of Greek Cypriots. We cannot have a repeat of these circumstances. Certainly, we want guarantees in the new federal system. From whom we can expect this? As the Turkish Cypriots, we have only one harbour to shelter and it is Turkey. There is not a consensus on the guarantee issue yet. We have seen instances where a Greek Cypriot who buys potatoes produced by a Turkish Cypriot has been threatened by fellow Greek Cypriots and received arson threats to his office. All these events are experienced nowadays. Therefore, no one should say that we do not need guarantees and security. It is not possible for the Turkish Cypriot side to sign an agreement which does not include guarantees.”
Furthermore, President Akıncı expressed hopes that a resolution of the Cyprus problem will have a positive knock-on effect to Turkey’s EU membership.
Minister Ertuğruloğlu is in Washington
Foreign Minister Tahsin Ertuğruloğlu went to Washington yesterday after completing his meetings in New York.
Minister Ertuğruloğlu gave an interview with Washington National Public Radio’s Diplomatic reporter Michele Kelemen yesterday, in which he evaluated the latest developments on the Cyprus issue and reiterated his hope that the negotiations will end with a fair and permanent settlement based on the equality of both sides in the island.
Furthermore, Ertuğruloğlu stressed that in addition to the two sides on the island, the international community must also prepare for either eventuality following the Cyprus talks. In any case, the Turkish Cypriot people need to get rid of the embargoes and political uncertainty.
Ertuğruloğlu meets with US State Department officials
As part of his ongoing Washington trip, Foreign Minister Tahsin Ertuğruloğlu met with officials of the US Department of State yesterday.
During his trip, Ertuğruloğlu also gave a presentation during a roundtable session at the Brookings Institution, one of Washington’s oldest and most prestigious think tanks. Following his presentation, Ertuğruloğlu took questions from participants comprised of academic, reporters, officials of the American-Turkish Cultural Associations and members of the Brookings Institution.
Ertuğruloğlu also attended a lunch hosted by the Ambassador of the Republic of Turkey to Washington Serdar Kılıç in his honour. During the lunch, they exchanged views and evaluated the latest developments on the Cyprus issue.
Çavuşoğlu and Johnson discussed the Cyprus issue
The Cyprus issue was discussed at the bilateral meeting between Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu and the British Foreign Secretary, Boris Johnson.
Speaking at a joint press conference with his Turkish counterpart, Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, Johnson stated that the negotiation process in Cyprus was discussed at the meeting and welcomed both sides’ “willingness for the settlement and a comprehensive solution to the Cyprus problem.”
Source: TRNC Public Information Office –
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