“The international community must recognize the TRNC”

 

Speaking at the July 20 Peace and Freedom Day Ceremony, President Erdoğan said: “The international community must recognize the TRNC and establish diplomatic, political, and economic relations without delay. Direct flights and trade routes must be opened.”

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan delivered a speech at the July 20 Peace and Freedom Day after laying a wreath at the Atatürk Monument in Lefkoşa.

“WE DO NOT FORGET WHAT WAS DONE TO OUR TURKISH CYPRIOT BROTHERS AND SISTERS”

Expressing his happiness and pride to be celebrating the 51st anniversary of the Cyprus Peace Operation, which restored the Turkish Cypriots’ peace and freedom, President Erdoğan said: “On the 51st anniversary of the operation, I remember with mercy our martyrs who sacrificed their lives for the Turkish Cypriot people’s fight for existence, and pray Allah for a healthy and long life to our heroic veterans, offering my gratitude to each one of them.”

Stressing that the Cyprus Peace Operation was a legitimate and imperative step taken within the framework of the guarantorship commitments and taken because of systematic violations and attacks against the Turkish Cypriot people, President Erdoğan stated: “51 years ago today, the glorious Turkish army, along with heroic fighters and our Turkish Cypriot brothers and sisters, defeated those dreaming of Enosis, and calm and peace were restored on the island. With the landing of our soldiers (Mehmetçik) on the island during the Cyprus Peace Operation, the whole world saw that the Turkish Cypriots were not alone.”

“The period leading up to the Peace Operation is just as important,” the President stressed. “This dark period, which had started with the EOKA terror in 1955 and throughout when the Turkish Cypriots remained under persecution and oppression until 1974, has been engrained in our nation’s soul. The Turkish Cypriot people, a main element of the island since 1571, were forced to live like freeloaders in their own homeland. It is not so easy to describe the gravity and depth of the suffering experienced during those days. Yet, there is a saying that summarizes everything: All the flowers of Cyprus couldn’t erase the smell of the blood Makarios transmitted to the island. Indeed, these lands, a piece from the paradise, witnessed such unspeakable atrocities.”  

Noting that it is impossible for Türkiye to forget the oppressions and sufferings inflicted upon the Turkish Cypriots and the embargoes imposed for half a century, President Erdoğan added: “We do not forget what was done to our Turkish Cypriot brothers and sisters. We learn lessons, take heed, and do whatever is necessary to prevent similar sufferings from happening again.”

“WE FULLY SUPPORT THE TWO-STATE VISION LAID OUT BY PRESIDENT TATAR”

President Erdoğan continued: “Thus far, we have repeatedly witnessed that the Greek Cypriots have always favored deadlock since they know that they would never be allowed to take possession of the island for themselves. Whenever the Turkish Cypriot side displayed a constructive stance, they rejected the plans put forward. However, they always claimed that they sought a solution and that the negotiations should resume while knocking down the negotiating table. They viewed the Turkish Cypriots as a minority whom they tried to attach to their so-called state. As you know, the Greek Cypriots insisted on a unitary state against the federal solution, which was actually the Turkish Cypriot side’s proposal. As a matter of fact, the federal model had been adopted as the general framework of the negotiations under the leadership of the late Denktaş. Yet what did the Greek Cypriots, who couldn’t accept the federal solution model just like the 1960 partnership state, do? They rejected all the solution proposals drafted based on the bi-communal, bi-zonal federal model.”

Underscoring that the Turkish Cypriots cannot afford to lose another 60 years, President Erdoğan said: “We can no longer waste time with the exhausted federation model based on United Nations parameters. There is no benefit to anyone in insisting on a solution model that has been tried many times, failed repeatedly, and has lost the support of the Turkish Cypriot side. We fully support the two-state vision laid out by President Tatar. Let us reiterate our call for the entire world: The international community must recognize the TRNC and establish diplomatic, political, and economic relations without delay. Direct flights and trade routes must be opened. Thankfully, the TRNC is increasingly having a more visible presence in the international arena at the current point we have reached. Although the Cypriot Greeks try to portray themselves as the sole authority on the Island, there is now a TRNC represented in the Organization of Turkic States, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, and the Economic Cooperation Organization.”