He will not return to the negotiating table without accepting the equal sovereignty and international status of Turkey, Ersin Tatar said in his New Year's message, broadcast yesterday by Turkish media.
According to the GTP overview, the Turkish leader claimed that it has not yet been possible to reach an agreement on the Cyprus issue due to the wrong attitude of the Greek Cypriot side, which does not respond positively to any proposals for cooperation and tries to hinder Turkish Cypriots around the world even in humanitarian matters.
According to Mr. Tatar's claims, the Greek Cypriot side is following a policy which shows that it still does not accept equality, it wishes to deprive the Turkish Cypriots of security and a significant part of their territories, to make Cyprus a territory of the EU, to remove it from the guarantees and in the end to assimilate the Turkish Cypriots.
"The Greek Cypriot administration, which still follows a hostile attitude against Turkey and the TDC, dreams of returning us to the pre-1974 period, of expelling Turkey from Cyprus and the union. I want to repeat today once again that we will not back down from our clear position that we put on the carpet in the Cyprus issue and we have no intention of returning to the table as long as our equal sovereignty and our equal international status are not accepted", he asserted. "We also believe that the solution of the Cyprus issue will seriously contribute to the development efforts of the two peoples, it will contribute to the well-being of the island, to the further development of the relations of the motherland Turkey with Greece and to the establishment of peace and stability in the region. We hope that this sincere attitude of ours and our humanitarian proposals will find a response within 2024", he said.
But whatever happens, he continued, "within 2024 we will continue to fight with the support of our motherland Turkey and in unity and solidarity with our people for the Turkish Cypriot people to take their place in the international community and for development sincere relations with the countries of the Organization of Turkic States".
On the occasion of the new year, Mr. Tatar had a telephone conversation with the Turkish President. Tayyip Erdogan wished peace and prosperity to the Turkish Cypriot "people", while Ersin Tatar wished that Allah rests the souls of the Turkish soldiers who were killed in the last few days during the fight against "terrorism" and that they do not experience similar pain again.
He also expressed the belief that Turkey and the Turkish Republic will experience a more powerful and successful period during the so-called "century of Turkey", which began with the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Turkish Republic.
In the meantime, in an interview with Jeni Duzen, the well-known Turkish academic, Ahmet Sozen, stated that the appointment of the special or personal envoy of the UN Secretary-General shows a mobility in the Cyprus issue, however given the period we are going through in global developments and international relations , cannot make any specific prediction. "Because international relations and developments in the world have entered such a complicated period that unexpected stories can emerge. So I am neither optimistic nor pessimistic,” he said.
He added that “if formal negotiations start, (beforehand) there are negotiations on how we will start these negotiations. Maybe this will take weeks, months, maybe it won't go anywhere."
Mr. Sozen said that a solution based on power-sharing and cooperation between the two sides is clearly in favor of the majority of Cypriots and the continuation of the division is in the interest of only a very small group of people, who "make more money than they can dream of."
He argued that the status quo in Cyprus is sustainable, since it has been going on for many years, but it is not static. "The Cyprus of 1974 is not the same as the Cyprus of the 1980s. The Cyprus of the 90s is not the same as the Cyprus of the 2000s and the Cyprus of 2023-2024 is not the same."
Source: KYPE