Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan ruled out any progress in the negotiations in Cyprus "without accepting the existence of two different and independent countries and peoples," stressing his country's insistence on "protecting its rights and the rights of the Turkish Cypriots in the eastern Mediterranean."

Erdogan said - in a speech he delivered today, Tuesday, after performing the Eid al-Adha prayer at the "Hala Sultan" mosque in Lefkosa, capital of the Republic of Northern Cyprus - "The key to resolving the Cyprus crisis lies in establishing the equality of Turkish Cypriots in sovereignty," considering that rejecting "the two-state solution means ignoring the rights of Turkish Cypriots to sovereignty, equality, independence and rights.”

In celebrations of the "Peace and Freedom Day" in the Turkish Republic of Cyprus, Erdogan added, "July 20, 1974 is the day when injustice ended on the island of Cyprus and peace prevailed throughout it, and the Turkish Cypriot people gained their independence," referring to his country's intervention in the island some 47 years ago. years old.

In his speech, the Turkish President touched on the position of the Greek Cypriots, saying, "The Greek Cypriots did not get rid of the complex of considering the Turks a minority on the island, and they rejected the solution based on justice, and they continue their insincere positions far from the facts of the island."

He added, "There are those in the ranks of Greek Cyprus who yearn for the massacres before 1974, and the attitudes of the Romans have not changed and it seems that they will not change, so none of us should wait for us to return to the starting point after today."

He pledged "that his country will continue to defend the rights of Turkish Cypriots to the end."

He continued, "No matter how many years pass, the Turkish Cypriot people will not give up their independence and freedom, and do not expect us to accept that the Turkish Cypriots remain as a minority under the rule of the Roman administration, and do not expect us to dispense with the sovereignty of Turkish Cypriots."

On the efforts related to resolving the crisis, Erdogan said that his country and the Turkish Republic of Cyprus "have made great and sincere efforts to bring peace to the whole of the island of Cyprus, and it is the Roman side that has not been able to get rid of the complex of viewing the Turkish Cypriots as a minority on the island."

The Turkish president considered that the Greek side "did not abide by any promise it made, as it had previously rejected the peace plan put forward by former Secretary-General of the United Nations Kofi Annan, as well as the referendum that was held to establish a federal system on the island."

Erdogan affirmed his country's absolute support for the proposal of Turkish Cypriot President Ersin Tatar regarding the establishment of peace on the island, stressing that the resumption of negotiations will only be on the basis of the two-state solution.

He pointed out that reopening the closed Marash area "will not generate new grievances. On the contrary, it will be a way to end existing grievances, by observing the right to property."

Erdogan (left) and Turkish Cypriot President Ersin Tatar (right) wave to the crowd in Lefkosa during the 47th anniversary of the Turkish peace process in Cyprus (European)

International Conference

In an implicit response to Western criticism of his country's position on the Cyprus crisis, Erdogan said, "We reiterate that we do not covet anyone's lands or property, but at the same time we will never allow anyone to usurp our lands, and all we wish is for peace, prosperity and stability to prevail in the region, and starting from From this principle, we present constructive proposals to resolve the crisis, and our proposal to hold an international conference on the Eastern Mediterranean shows our sincerity of intentions in this regard.

He added that "Turkish Cyprus has proposed solutions to share the region's wealth fairly, but the Roman administration announced that it will start exploration and research work on its own, and this announcement clearly shows who refuses to cooperate and who obstructs the solutions."

He stressed that his country "will decisively implement everything necessary for the development of the Turkish Republic of Cyprus and the achievement of a sustainable economic structure for it."

The Turkish president said, "We know that there is a segment that is disturbed by our historic visit to Turkish Cyprus, and this segment is holding a conference in the United States of America to announce its support for Greece and the Greek administration in Cyprus, claiming that it wants to help Athens and Greek Cyprus against what it calls Turkish aggressions."

Erdogan concluded by saying, "We will no longer say the northern part and the southern part of the island of Cyprus, we will say Turkish Cyprus anymore."

In response to a question about the possible official recognition of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus by Azerbaijan, Erdogan stressed that he constantly discusses this issue with his Azerbaijani counterpart Ilham Aliyev.

Tahsin Ertuğruloglu, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus - which is only recognized by Turkey - said on June 20 that "his country cannot wait another 53 years to resolve the island crisis," stressing "the need to discuss the two-state solution instead of the solution." federal".

"We have lost 53 years to solve the island crisis, and we cannot afford to lose another 53 years," Ertuğruloglu added.

It is noteworthy that Turkey launched on July 20, 1974 what it called the "peace process" on the island of Cyprus after the island witnessed a military coup led by Nicos Sampson against Cypriot President Makarios III on July 15 of the same year, and the coup took place with the support of the ruling military council in Greece, while Greek armed groups targeted the island's Turks.

The Turkish army began a second military operation on August 14, 1974, and the two operations succeeded in achieving their goals, as a prisoner exchange agreement was concluded between the two sides on September 16 of the same year.

On February 13, 1975, the "Federal Turkish Cypriot State" was established in the northern part of the island, and Rauf Denktash was elected President of the Republic, which became known as the "Turkish Republic of Cyprus".