President Ersin Tatar received a delegation from the Gazimağusa Branch of the TMT Fighters Association.

Speaking during the visit, President Tatar said “Our sovereignty, our state, Türkiye’s guarantees and the presence of Turkish troops here are four concepts that we will never compromise on”.

He also pointed to the importance of the TMT fighters for the Turkish Cypriot people.

Touching upon the Cyprus issue, the President referred to the pressures on the Turkish Cypriot side and the attempts to bring the Turkish Cypriot side to the table through various games.

He said that the UN Personal Envoy should take into account that the previous federal talks were not successful and that the Greek Cypriot side has never accepted the sovereignty of the Turkish Cypriot side while seeking common ground.

Stating that after the Greek Cypriot side became a member of the EU they tried to remove Türkiye from the island, Tatar emphasized that a federation-based treaty contains many traps for the Turkish Cypriots.

“In a system where the majority rules the minority, they are searching for a solution plan that will weaken us here by spreading the Greek Cypriot authority to the north, especially due to the lack of borders within the European Union,” said Tatar, noting that the republic was established with the existence of two peoples and the sovereignty of two peoples on the island within the Republic of Cyprus agreements, and that the Turkish Cypriot people are a sovereign people.

Reminding that the Turkish Cypriots who were removed from the Republic of Cyprus at gunpoint were forced to migrate, President Tatar said, “The Turkish Cypriots resisted and repelled these attacks and July 20, 1974, was a turning point with the Cyprus Peace Operation.”

He said there is a state in the north that is at least 60 years old.

“Now we have the TRNC state and with its sovereign status it has to be part of a treaty. This is extremely important,” said Tatar.

Explaining that Türkiye’s guarantorship is included in the 1960 agreement and that they are trying to return to pre-1960 conditions not 1974, in order to remove Türkiye’s guarantorship, President Tatar said that the Turkish Cypriots have inherent sovereignty rights in the 1960 agreement, and that there are now two states on the geographical ground formed after 1974.

“We can only reach a treaty with the cooperation of two states,” the President said, adding that our struggle continues.

Underlining the importance of Türkiye’s full support for the two-state policy, Tatar referred to Turkish President Recep Tayip Erdoğan speeches at the United Nations and international platforms calling for the TRNC to be recognized and supported, he said that the unfair and outdated embargoes imposed on the Turkish Cypriots should also be lifted.

Pointing out that Britain, which was on the island for 37 years, received two sovereign bases, President Tatar said, “We are still struggling for the recognition of the sovereignty of the Turkish Cypriots who have been on the island since 1571… We need to protect our sovereignty, our state, the guarantorship of the Republic of Türkiye and the presence of its soldiers until the end.”

The head of the TMT Fighters Association Gazimağusa Branch President Ahmet Sevinç for his part expressed his support for President Tatar’s two state policy in Cyprus.