Özgürgün: “It should be our duty to claim these lands”
Stating that the Greek Cypriot side want to control the whole island, Prime Minister Hüseyin Özgürgün said that claiming part of these lands is the duty of the Turkish Cypriot people.
Evaluating the Cyprus issue, Prime Minister Özgürgün said, “The Cyprus issue has consistently come to the fore because demands of the Greek Cypriot side are unceasing. They want to dominate the whole island. It should be our duty to claim part of these lands both for us and for future generations.”
Prime Minister also said, “As Turkish Cypriots, we have to solve our domestic affairs in order to stand strong on the Cyprus issue as far as possible.”
Eide: “This document certainly will not be a UN proposal”
President Mustafa Akıncı received the UN Secretary General’s Special Advisor on Cyprus, Espen Barth Eide, who is on the island undertaking preparatory work ahead of the Cyprus Conference.
Speaking to the media following the meeting, Eide highlighted developments in the last two weeks and “the important meeting” that the UN Secretary General had with the leaders in New York.
Eide stated that the leaders had agreed to reconvene the Conference on Cyprus and go back to Geneva with the ambition of solving all outstanding issues.
Stating that he has been in constant contact with almost all the participants, including the two sides, the guarantor countries, the European Union and the United Nations as an observer, Eide emphasised that there is serious determination to bring a successful conclusion.
The conference will start on 28 June, Eide said, with all parties planning for the conference to take a few weeks, but prepared for it to go on for as long as it takes, depending on the developments. Eide also stated that the works will go along a more practical and logistical route and, as the details are very important, all issues will be on the table and all issues will be discussed interdependently.
Touching on the common document issue which has been widely discussed in the media, Eide said, “This document will be based on the inputs that we had previously received in the last Mont Pèlerin meeting – from all sides – on security and guarantees, but it will also be based on the inputs that we’re getting now, and in the conversations I’ve been having with the guarantor countries and also with the EU.”
“It will be a compilation of positions that they have, ideas that they have, which we will try to structure and make into something that can be the basis for discussions, but it will not be setting out a UN proposal” concluded Special Advisor Eide.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs Conference Hall named after Uğur Umar
As instructed by Foreign Minister Tahsin Ertuğruloğlu, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Conference Hall has been named after Uğur Umar, a diplomat at the TRNC Ministry of Foreign Affairs who passed away recently.
In an opening ceremony today, Ertuğruloğlu presented the “Uğur Umar Conference Hall”. Umar’s family and relatives attended the ceremony, together with the Ministry’s staff and personnel.
Alongside his many missions at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Umar represented the TRNC as the Representative of Strasbourg and Consul in İzmir, and was then appointed to the TRNC Representative Office in Abu Dhabi. Before starting this new post, Umar passed away in Ankara where he had been receiving medical treatment. Uğur Umar, who died at the age of 50, was married and father of one child.
Zeliha Khashman has been appointed as the TRNC Abu-Dhabi Representative
Zeliha Khashman has been appointed as the TRNC Abu-Dhabi Representative. She will start her duty on 1st September 2017.
The 8th International Lapta Tourism Festival to be held on 22-24 June
The 8th International Lapta Tourism Festival on 22-24 June will be opened by Prime Minister Hüseyin Özgürgün on 22 June at 20:00.
Various dance shows and concerts will take place at the festival, which this year has the theme, ‘Echo of the Nature’. Folk dance teams from Turkey, Macedonia and Poland will participate in the festival.
‘In the Shadow of Cedar’ has been deemed worthy of ‘Academy Special Award’
A short film by Turkish Cypriot director Müge Günay, ‘In the Shadow of Cedar’ has been recognised with an ‘Academy Special Award’ at the 10th Free Film Festival organised in Adana, Turkey. The award will be presented to Turkish Cypriot Şafak Yolcu who wrote the screenplay.
‘In the Shadow of Cedar’ is being showcased at a number of prestigious international film festivals. It will be shown at the Twin Lion International Short Film Festival on 7-8 October in Mumbai, India, as well as the Culture Festival in London on 25 June.
Speaking to the TAK news agency, Günay said that the story of ‘In the Shadow of Cedar’ is ‘the desperate migration’ of Turkish Cypriots due to the unjust embargoes that have been imposed on them. Günay added that she wanted to show the world the inhuman and unjust embargoes imposed on the Turkish Cypriot people.
Source: TRNC Public Information Office –
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