President Ersin Tatar holds conference on "Blue Homeland and Cyprus within the Framework of Developments in the eastern Mediterranean" at Dicle University in Diyarbakır
“Acceptance of an independent TRNC, a Turkish State in the eastern Mediterranean, will have significant benefits for the Turkic world.”
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President Ersin Tatar has stated that an accepted independent TRNC as a Turkish State in the eastern Mediterranean will have significant benefits for the Turkic world and will serve sustainable peace and stability in the region.
The President, who also received an Honorary Doctorate diploma in the field of Public Administration and Political Science by the Senate of Dicle University, made the remarks at the university’s 15 July Culture and Congress Centre, at the conference titled “Blue Homeland and Cyprus within the Framework of Developments in the Eastern Mediterranean”.
President Tatar expressed his gratitude to the university senate for the honorary doctorate which he said he is accepting on behalf of the Turkish Cypriot People and himself.
Participating in the conference, the President stated that the TRNC is a very important State not only for the Turkish Cypriot people, but also for the survival and future of all Turkic peoples. He added: "Acceptance of the independence of the TRNC as a Turkish state in the eastern Mediterranean will have significant benefits for the Turkic world. Our acceptance is needed in order for Turkic States to keep a stronghold in the region.”
President Tatar explained that the Turkish Cypriot People are as sovereign as Greek Cypriots with equal inherent rights and said “our struggle for existence has been continuing for more than half a century, against the Greek-Greek Cypriot efforts to annex the island of Cyprus to Greece. We shall never surrender our sovereignty and our State, which is a cornerstone for sustainable peace and stability not only in Cyprus but also for the region.”
President Tatar stated that he was elected in 2020 on the ticket for the sovereign equality and equal international status of the Turkish Cypriot People. “This basis is fully supported by Motherland Türkiye, and has not come about overnight. It has come into existence because negotiations for a federal solution, that had been ongoing for decades, which were all rejected by the Greek Cypriot Side, have been exhausted. Consequently, we developed the idea of opening a fresh new page that is based on the cooperative relationship of the two Sides, that co-exist side-by-side in peace,” the President said.
President Tatar shared information about the struggle in Cyprus of the Turkish Cypriot People which he said started with the conquering of the island by the Ottomans in 1571, and still continuing until the present day. He said the Greek-Greek Cypriot duo are making unfounded claims that they are the sole authority of the island of Cyprus, adding: “However, the Greeks have never been the sole sovereign of the whole island, whereas the Ottoman Empire ruled the island for more than three-and-a-half centuries."
“Turkish Cypriot People are just as sovereign as the Greek Cypriots and neither side can rule over the other”
President Tatar remarked that there are two separate Peoples in Cyprus – the Turkish Cypriot and Greek Cypriot peoples, each with a distinct language, culture, religion and historical background. He said, ever since Great Britain colonised Cyprus, the Greek Cypriot Side have been aspiring to annex the island to Greece (Enosis). The President added that the Turkish Cypriot People emigrated to far away countries such as the UK and Australia, due to the armed attacks initiated against them by the Greek-Greek Cypriot duo and the EOKA terrorists as part of their objective for Enosis. He said there is an estimated 1 million Turkish Cypriots living abroad today.
The President added that the Turkish Cypriot People are inherent equals in Cyprus, and are just as sovereign as the Greek Cypriots. “Our inherent rights emanates from history and from international treaties which made our people equal partners in the republic. However, Turkish Cypriots were ejected from the state apparatus by the Greek Cypriots in 1963, through force of arms, and we have been compelled to govern ourselves as a state from then on, until today.”
The President, underlining that neither side in Cyprus can rule over the other, said that the Turkish Cypriots proclaimed the TRNC following many years of failed attempts to reach a settlement due to the Greek Cypriot intransigence. “The TRNC is a symbol of our right to self-determinate, our sovereignty and our independence.”
Emphasising that the Turkish Cypriots have come to this day with decades of heroic struggle of the Turkish Cypriot people and the support of the Republic of Türkiye, President Tatar pointed out that Greece has unfortunately always considered Cyprus as its “13th Greek island” in addition to the Aegean islands, within the mentality of Greece's "Megali Idea" ambitions.
President Tatar emphasised that the Turkish Cypriot people and the people of the Republic of Türkiye have always been very close as kindreds, and said that the Turkish Peace Operation of 1974 brought real peace to the island of Cyprus, freedom for the Turkish Cypriot people, and had stopped the bloodshed. The President also underlined the importance of preserving the equilibrium and balance between Türkiye and Greece in the geopolitical climate of the region. Noting that this balance was re-established in 1974, President Tatar said that the Blue Homeland doctrine has provided a significant importance in the rights and interests of the Turkish Side in the eastern Mediterranean with regards to hydrocarbons.
“The TRNC, as an independent country, has all the components necessary for the functioning of a democratic State”
President Tatar stated that for decades, a compromise for a federal based solution could not be reached despite the goodwill and arduous efforts of the Turkish Cypriot Side and the Republic of Türkiye.
“The fundamental reason why a settlement under a federal-based partnership on the basis of equality has not been reached for many decades, is because the Greek Cypriot Side sees itself as the sole owner and authority of the island and theTurkish Cypriots as a minority. This is the mentality that has prevented a solution, which was proven in 2004 when they rejected the UN Comprehensive Settlement [Annan] Plan, and also in 2017 in Crans-Montana,” the President said.
President Tatar stated that in 2004, international actors, including the then UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, the EU, US, UK and many others, had openly stated that the inhuman isolation on the Turkish Cypriot People, preventing direct trade and direct flights to name a few, would be ended. “However, what happened? The Greek Cypriot Side were made EU members in the name of the whole island within a week of rejecting the solution itself in 2004, without the consent of the Turkish Cypriot Side who were left out in the cold. The promises to end the isolation on Turkish Cypriots have never been honoured and my People continue to face unjust restrictions across different areas. This is also a violation of our individual and collective human rights,” he said. The President added that the EU, by admitting the island into the bloc, had not only contravened the 1960 treaties, but also the Copenhagen criterias.
President Tatar added: “. . .And to add insult to injury, threats are being directed against friendly States who want to formally recognise the TRNC. They are being told ‘If you recognise the TRNC, you will be isolated.’ This is the magnitude of unfairness, injustice and biasness by some towards my people.”
The President emphasised that the “struggle for sustainable peace, justice and fairness” will continue. “The TRNC was admitted as an observer member to the Organisation of Turkic States. This is a momentous historical turning point. I wish to express my most heartfelt gratitude, from myself and on behalf of the Turkish Cypriot People to all officials and States for their support to us,” he said.
Emphasising that the recognition of the independence of the TRNC, a Turkish state in the eastern Mediterranean, would mean keeping a stronghold for the Turkish world, President Tatar touched upon the dangers it may pose for Türkiye 's security if Cyprus were to become a Greek island.
President Tatar said that Southern Cyprus should accept the facts on the ground in Cyprus and accept the sovereign equality and equal international status of the Turkish Cypriot People, which they continue to reject. “The Greek Cypriot Side is continuing the aspiration of taking over the whole island and eventually making it a Greek-ruled island. . .and are seeking to use EU mechanisms to serve this objective, where the majority rules the minority,” the President said.
Expressing his regret to have learnt about the earthquake in Düzce this morning, President Tatar said there was consolation that there had been no lives lost.
Condemning the recent terrorist attack that took place in İstanbul, President Tatar said: “May all those who lost their lives rest in eternal peace and those injured have a speedy recovery.”