Statement by President Tufan Erhürman

President Erhürman: “We have concluded our work and consultations, and we are ready for the process that is about to begin.”

President Tufan Erhürman issued a written statement on Sunday, indicating that preparations had been completed ahead of the visit of António Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations, and underlining that they were ready for the new process that is about to begin.

The full statement by President Erhürman is as follows:

"We have acted exactly as we have consistently said we would. Ahead of Mr. Guterres’ visit to our island, we did not seek to stake out any position through the media, nor did we engage in a blame game.

We conducted our work and consultations intensively and, as of today, have concluded them. We are ready for the process that will begin tomorrow with the visit of Ms. María Ángela Holguín Cuéllar, Personal Envoy of the Secretary-General of the United Nations.

Mr. Guterres, United Nations officials and the public are all aware of the approaches we have put forward, guided by my people's will for a solution and drawing on the experiences we have gained to date.

We have said that Mr. Guterres’ visit to our island is important, that it constitutes a continuation of the efforts being undertaken by the Secretary-General. However, it would not be right to attach to this visit the meaning of the beginning or the end of a solution, or of anything else.

We support the efforts being undertaken by the Secretary-General and are seeking to contribute to them in good faith. As always, we are conducting our work in close consultation with the officials of the Republic of Türkiye.

As has been the case to date, the will of our people will continue to be our guiding principle. Our people will be informed in a timely manner of everything that does and does not take place, and we will continue our course by taking into account the views of all segments of society.”