Turkey supports a two-state solution and is after sovereign equality, not political equality following Crans Montana, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said on Monday during his visit in the north.
Cavusoglu arrived in the north on Saturday and held meetings with Turkish Cypriot officials, including leader Ersin Tatar. Discussions were expected to focus on the Cyprus issue and the new protocol signed between the north and Ankara that has Turkish Cypriots up in arms and protesting in the streets.
Speaking to representatives of 22 non-governmental organisations in Lapithos, the Turkish Foreign Minister said Turkey’s negotiating team will evaluate the latest developments in the Cyprus issue talks.
“Because the Greek Cypriot side is trying to reconstruct and repackage the issues in brought from its old agenda, and tried to blur negotiations through its confidence building measures.
“Our stance is clear, but we always talk, consult, and make decisions together,” he said.
Cavusoglu expressed solidarity towards Turkish Cypriots, saying that the Turkish Republic and the Turkish people never abandoned them. “Therefore we will overcome everything together. The important thing is to dismantle the plans that have been set up in Cyprus”.
The Turkish Foreign Minister said that we have been negotiating for a federation for years, but as you know, the Greek Cypriot side did not want to share anything with you, so they rejected all the plans, the Annan plan, all the models, all the studies that emerged on the federation.
“They flipped the tables in Crans Montana, and I was there”.
Cavusoglu said Turkey was very clear that Crans Montana would be the last time they negotiated for a federation. From then on, they have been after sovereign equality, not political equality.
“And here is where a two-state solution comes in. Two states that will live side by side could cooperate with each other in every way.
If the Greek Cypriot side is sincere in seeing Turkish Cypriots as equals, it will recognise their political sovereignty and we will cooperate,” he added.
On the issue of hydrocarbons, he said “the Greek Cypriot side says that Turkish Cypriots have rights, but when we say ‘let’s agree on fair distribution,’ they backtrack and refuse to approach such a level of cooperation”.
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