Prime Minister Üstel Slams GC President’s New Year Message

Prime Minister Üstel Slams GC President’s New Year Message

Prime Minister Ünal Üstel made a statement regarding the New Year’s Eve message of the President of the Greek Cypriot Administration of Southern Cyprus, Nikos Christodoulides.

The 2026 New Year’s message of the President of the Greek Cypriot Administration of Southern Cyprus, Nikos Christodoulides, makes it clear that a unilateral political understanding that ignores the current realities in Cyprus and has failed repeatedly in the past is maintained.

Christodoulides’ treatment of the Republic of Cyprus, which was established in 1960 and of which the Turkish Cypriot people are equal founding partners, with the discourse of “restructuring and modernization”; It is a clear admission that the Greek Cypriot side’s policy of excluding its equal partner from the administration by force of arms and unilaterally violating the Cyprus Agreements and the Constitution still continues. Trying to maintain a structure that has been usurped in violation of international law and presented as belonging only to the Greek Cypriots, with reform rhetoric, is the basic mentality that condemns the Cyprus problem to a deadlock.

Cyprus reunification hopes, died in Crans Montana

The calls of the President of the Greek Cypriot Administration for the “liberation and reunification of the homeland”; It consists of the re-imposition of solution models that reject the political equality of the Turkish Cypriot people, aim to abolish the security and guarantor system, and have failed many times in the past. The Turkish Cypriot side has repeatedly made it clear that the federal solution model, with the collapse of the negotiation process in Crans Montana, is no longer valid due to the intransigent attitude of the Greek Cypriot side.

A Two State Solution is the only solution

The only realistic and sustainable solution in Cyprus; It is a model based on the cooperation of two separate states that exist side by side on the basis of sovereign equality. The will, right to self-government, and sovereignty of the Turkish Cypriot people cannot be made a subject of discussion in any way. The prerequisite for the resumption of negotiations; It is a clear acceptance of the sovereign equality and equal international status of the Turkish Cypriot side.

The Greek Cypriot President’s expression of satisfaction with the appointment of the Special Representative for Cyprus by the President of the European Commission and his efforts to link EU-Turkey relations with the Cyprus problem reflect an unacceptable approach. From the point of view of the Turkish Cypriot side, the European Union has lost its neutrality in the Cyprus problem; It is an actor that plays a role in maintaining the unjust isolation imposed on the Turkish Cypriot people. For this reason, the TRNC has previously openly declared that it does not recognize and support this initiative unless the representative in question exhibits an impartial and fair attitude.

The TRNC wants Recognition in 2026

The Turkish Cypriot people are entering 2026 in their own sovereign state, the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, and under the strong and effective guarantee of the Motherland Republic of Turkey. The way to regional security and stability; It is not through the unilateral steps of the Greek Cypriot side, but through the recognition of the legitimate rights of the Turkish Cypriot people and the mutual respect and cooperation of the two States.

In this context, the usurper Greek Cypriot Administration, to take the actual and political realities on the island as a basis, to accept the existence of two separate sovereign states, and to contribute to the peace, prosperity, and stability of the Eastern Mediterranean with a constructive understanding.

Greek Cypriot Administration ignores the Cyprus realities

The current state of the Cyprus problem and the deep divergence between the parties clearly show that there is a serious disconnect between the rhetoric of the Greek Cypriot Administration and the real negotiation ground. In this context, as the Turkish Cypriot side, I would like to emphasize the following points once again:

• The equal rights and interests of the Turkish Cypriot people cannot be ignored in any initiative to be developed within the framework of the international community and the Presidency of the Council of the EU. All kinds of international initiatives should serve not only to strengthen the position of the Greek Cypriot Administration, but also to create a basis for a solution on the basis of equality between the two peoples.
• The intransigent attitude of the Greek Cypriot side in the past continues today. The Greek Cypriot Administration continued to ignore the equal status and guarantor rights of the Turkish Cypriot side through its diplomacy throughout 2025. Excluding the existence of the Turkish Cypriot people from the negotiations will not change the realities on the ground.
• The foreign relations strengthened by the Greek Cypriot Administration through military and diplomatic alliances serve to increase tension on the island, not peace. These unilateral initiatives in the field of defence damage the regional balance and weaken the hopes for a solution.
• The equal rights, security, and guarantees of the Turkish Cypriot people are indispensable priorities at the negotiating table. As the TRNC, we; We will continue to openly and resolutely advocate for fair and sustainable solutions on property, security, guarantees, and equal international status.

New Year; I hope that it will be a year in which dialogues based on mutual respect are strengthened, concrete and realistic political steps are taken, and a future based on trust is built between the two peoples. On this occasion, I wish a year 2026 in which both people will live in peace, prosperity, and stability.

Source (Turkish): TRNC Prime Ministry

To read more News click here