Current Situation on the Island
Current Situation on the Island
The Cyprus issue is an issue of status.
There exist two Peoples on the island of Cyprus with different languages, religions and cultures.
The Turkish Cypriot People have their own State, namely, the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), which is a fully-fledged State, with its democratically elected President, Government and Parliament, independent judiciary and all other state institutions intact. The Greek Cypriot side on the other hand uses the usurped title of “Republic of Cyprus”, a government they have hijacked and turned into a purely Greek Cypriot state since 1963.
The truth is that both Peoples on the island are sovereign equals and any effort to resolve this issue must take this fact into account.
The Turkish Cypriot People, who have displayed a constructive and result-oriented stance towards reaching an agreement since the start of the negotiations in 1968, still suffer from the continuation of the status quo on the island and from the unjust and inhumane isolation imposed on them in all spheres of life, ranging from representation in the international arena to travel, sports, trade and culture.
It is a fact that the “bi-zonal, bi-communal federation” model, which has been negotiated since 1977, has proven unsuccessful as a result of the intransigent stance of the Greek Cypriot side, due to their unwillingness to share power and prosperity with the Turkish Cypriot People.
Today, we have come to a point where all previous models for an agreement on the Cyprus issue have been tried and exhausted and the time has come to adopt a new approach based on the current realities on the ground.
With this understanding, as the Turkish Cypriot side, we have put forward our new vision at the informal Cyprus meeting held in Geneva in April 2021, with the hope and belief that it will provide the much-needed stability, security and cooperation in and around the Island of Cyprus.
In this regard, the Turkish Cypriot side believes that an agreement within the framework of good neighbourly relations on the island can be reached between two existing States on the basis of their sovereign equality and equal international status.
Continued insistence on the “federation” model, which has been negotiated for decades according to the circumstances of the day and yielded no results until today due to the intransigence of the Greek Cypriot side, is not in line with the realities on the ground.
During his speech within the framework of the 78th Session of the United Nations General Assembly on 19 September 2023, President of the Republic of Türkiye Recep Tayyip Erdoğan echoed the expectations of the Turkish Cypriot People and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus from the international community, calling once again on the international community to recognize the independence of the TRNC and establish diplomatic, political and economic relations with it. Moreover, Mr. Erdoğan emphasized that the only appropriate agreement model on the Island of Cyprus is the one which acknowledges the existence of two neighbouring States, living side by side in harmony.
In light of these calls, the international community should comprehend the realities on the island without wasting further time and start making efforts to reach an agreement based on the sovereign equality and equal international status of the Turkish Cypriot People. We stand ready to commence negotiations on the basis of this new vision.
TRNC’s Recent Cooperation Proposals (July 2022)
As for maintaining the dialogue between the two sides on the island, the Turkish Cypriot side is ready to work together with the Greek Cypriot side. To this end, two sets of proposals, prepared by the President of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, H.E. Mr. Ersin Tatar, in line with our new vision based on the prevailing realities on the island, were conveyed to the Greek Cypriot side through the UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres on 1 July 2022 and on 8 July 2022, respectively.
In brief, the Turkish Cypriot proposals envisage the establishment of a Cooperation Mechanism (CM) on the foregoing issues of mutual concern, such as hydrocarbons, electricity, renewable energy and water, as well as cooperation on the issues of demining of the island and irregular migration. It is proposed that the Cooperation Mechanism would be composed of officials from the relevant Turkish Cypriot and Greek Cypriot departments. The parties would exchange the necessary information on the issue at hand, which would then be reviewed allowing the adoption of recommendations with a view to increasing cooperation and coordination. It is certain that these proposals, which demonstrate the Turkish Cypriot side’s good will to move forward, would clearly help to build mutual trust and understanding between the Turkish Cypriot and Greek Cypriot sides.
We believe that the implementation of the above-mentioned proposals of the TRNC will not only contribute to peace and stability in the Eastern Mediterranean, but also help an agreement to be reached between the two existing States on the island through a new relationship based on cooperation.
Recent Developments
In January 2024, the Secretary-General of the UN António Guterres appointed Maria Ángela Holguin Cuéllar as his Personal Envoy on Cyprus. The TRNC accepted the appointment on the condition that the mandate of the Personal Envoy be limited to exploring whether common ground exists for the resumption of formal negotiations, and that the assignment not exceed a period of six months.
On October 15, the Secretary-General hosted an informal dinner in New York with TRNC President Ersin Tatar and Greek Cypriot Leader Nikos Christodoulides. The outcome of the dinner underlined the absence of a common ground between the two sides.
UN Secretary-General put on record, once again, in his Report on his mission of good offices in Cyprus published on 3 January 2025 (S/2025/7) the fact that “no common ground had been found between the leaders on the way forward on the Cyprus issue”.
Most recently, at the invitation of the Secretary-General, the parties came together again in an informal meeting held in Geneva, Switzerland, on March 17–18. The United Nations stated that the purpose of the meeting was to “provide an opportunity for meaningful dialogue going forward.” Following the meeting, the Secretary-General announced that the two sides had reached an agreement on the opening of four new crossing points, the demining of the island, the implementation of solar energy projects, environmental initiatives, the restoration of cemeteries, and the establishment of a Youth Technical Committee. The Secretary-General also stated that he would appoint a Personal Representative to coordinate between the two sides on the agreed matters and that a new meeting in a similar format would be held in July 2025.