President Ersin Tatar, said on Sunday that the new process on Cyprus will “only continue at a level accepted by both parties.”
He said the Turkish Cypriot side “will not compromise on the principle of sovereignty.”
Tatar made the comments to a meeting with TRNC citizens living in New York following an earlier meeting with the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.
The president who completed his contacts in New York on the sidelines of the 78th UN General Assembly will be returning to the TRNC this evening.
Speaking at a meeting with TRNC and Turkish citizens living in New York on Sunday, President Ersin Tatar said that the Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan had once again called on the international community to recognize the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) as well as remove the unjust international isolation and embargoes imposed on Turkish Cypriots during his address at the UN General Assembly.
He said that Mr Erdoğan’s call was of great importance in terms of voicing the just cause of the Turkish Cypriot people to the world.
“With the efforts of the Republic of Türkiye, we are determined to continue our just struggle to the end,” the president said.
Tatar also drew attention to the ongoing efforts to develop relations with other countries.
Stating that the Turkish Cypriots are “a part of the Great Turkish Nation,” Tatar evaluated the TRNC’s observer membership to the Organization of Turkic States.
“In a way, we represent the entire Turkish world in the Eastern Mediterranean,” he said.
President Ersin Tatar also said that any new negotiations process in Cyprus could only continue at a level accepted by both sides and that there would be no compromise on the principle of sovereign equality.
“There are two separate religions, languages, traditions and culture in Cyprus. In the south we have a Greek Cypriot administration and in the north we have the Turkish Cypriot state which is the TRNC. These two states can co-exist and cooperate with one another but we are only ready for a relationship whereby one will not assert its authority over the other,” he said.
Also touching upon his meeting with the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, President Ersin Tatar said that he had conveyed to the Secretary-General the demands of “the parties on the island to take into account the equal two-state structure and sovereignty wishes of the TRNC in order to work together on issues such as renewable energy, equal access to the EU, irregular migration and mine clearance.”
“We reiterated to the Secretary-General that we will not enter into a negotiation process without our conditions of sovereignty and equality being accepted by both sides. He also showed understanding for these and said that he closely followed the events, agreed with us that an agreement acceptable to both sides could be reached through the free will of both parties, and assured us that he would never exert pressure.”
“These achievements were undoubtedly made with the support of the Republic of Türkiye. Now, it is important to crown this with a two-state solution,” he said.
Tatar, who said the aim of the TRNC is to “live in peace and harmony,” said: “The Turkish people also have the right to live on the island as much as the Greeks. For 60 years, the Turkish Cypriot people have faced a great injustice.”
Tatar pointed out that the Greek Cypriots are trying to assimilate the Turkish nation and turn Cyprus into a Greek island.
He said the TRNC were able to overcome the isolation created by the Greek Cypriot side in negotiations at the UN, thanks to Türkiye and make their voices heard.