Statement of President Ersin Tatar regarding the meeting with the Republic of The Gambia Vice President Badara Alieu Joof and his invitation for President Tatar to visit The Gambia
“The period of leaving the future of the Turkish Cypriot people and Cyprus only to the consent of the Greek Cypriot side is now over”
The Statement of President Ersin Tatar reads as follows:
“My historic meeting with The Gambian Vice President Badara Alieu Joof yesterday, and our shared political will to strengthen the cooperation between our two countries to much higher levels in every field, is just one indication that the new policy on the recognition of the sovereign equality and equal international status of the Turkish Cypriot people that is being put forward in harmony with Motherland Türkiye, is beginning to be accepted in the world.
It is of particular importance that the visit of Vice President Joof of Gambia, who arrived in the TRNC from Ercan Airport, has invited me to visit The Gambia in pursuance of preparations for the benefit of our two States.
Prior to the planned visit, which is to take place during the first few months in the New Year, our technical delegations and relevant ministries will agree on a memorandum of understanding by carrying out the necessary work to achieve concrete results through cooperation in different fields.
The TRNC attaches great importance to its contacts with the outside world. Those who have pandered to the artificial status created by the Greek Cypriot Side to unjustly represent the whole island, after expelling us at gunpoint from the state apparatus of the partnership republic, which was established with the emergence of our inherent rights, are now experiencing an awakening on the realisation of the facts on the ground and the new vision we have put forward after my election as President.
Our policy is one based on reality. In this period, we are loudly responding to fait accompli which prevent us from even participating in many events and organisations where issues related to the Island of Cyprus are discussed.
We consider the call made by the President of the Republic of Türkiye, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, for the formal recognition of the TRNC by the international community in his speech at the 77th session of the General Assembly of the United Nations, as a milestone. The period of leaving the future of the Turkish Cypriot people and Cyprus only to the consent of the Greek Cypriot side is now over.
Following the historic call of President of Erdoğan, the admission of our State with its constitution name to the Organisation of Turkic States as an observer member is of significant importance in this context.
There is a need for the inherent sovereign equality and equal international status of the Turkish Cypriot People to be reaffirmed and to establish a cooperative relationship between the two existing States on the island. We are committed to this new policy which has first put forward in Geneva in April 2021 and been declared to the whole world, in full unity and with the support of Motherland Türkiye. It is regretful, however, that rather than responding positively to our settlement proposal, the Greek Cypriot side continued their unilateral activities and armament that is escalating tensions. At this point, our expectation from other countries, and indeed the UN and EU, is to encourage the Greek Cypriot Side towards accepting the inherent sovereign equality and equal international status of the Turkish Cypriot People.”