President Ersin Tatar on Wednesday received the President of the Atatürk Culture, Language and History Institution Prof. Dr. Yüksel Özgen, Ankara Social Sciences University North Cyprus Coordinator Prof. Dr. Enver Arpa and an accompanying delegation.
Speaking during the meeting Tatar stated that the two-state policy was now a national policy for the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus and Türkiye.
Tatar touched upon the February 6 Earthquake disaster in Türkiye expressing his condolences to the families who lost their loved ones.
He pointed out that the pain experienced will never be forgotten.
Referring to the 23rd of April National Sovereignty and Children’s Day celebrations which took place last week, Tatar emphasized the importance of sovereignty for children and youth to live in peace, tranquillity and security.
“We will never compromise or make concessions from our sovereignty” he added.
“We say that if there is to be a treaty, it will be through cooperation between two equally sovereign states. Turkish Cypriots know very well the concept of sovereignty and struggle,” the president said.
He explained that a federal settlement was no longer possible as such a solution would mean the removal of Turkish troops from the island, the scrapping of motherland Türkiye’s guarantees.
Stating that the Turkish Cypriots continue their existence with the support of Türkiye, he said, “We are grateful to Türkiye and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan for the support they have given us in recent years.”
He reiterated the historic call made by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan at the 77th UN General Assembly, asking for the lifting of the embargoes and isolations.
He continued his speech by noting that the lifting of these outdated embargoes and isolations would pave the way for the TRNC and that the TRNC should be recognised as a sovereign state.
In addition, he said “our acceptance as an observer member into the Organisation of Turkic States, shows that the TRNC’s status has upgraded, which is very important in terms of registering our own sovereignty”.