The president of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) underlined once again that excluding Turkish Cypriots from the political aspects of unification talks and disregarding their rights over the resources in the Mediterranean Sea will not contribute to regional peace and stability. Speaking at a summit Saturday, TRNC President Mustafa Akıncı said, "Pushing Turkish Cypriots out of the equation will not render positive contributions for the regional stability and peace nor for a logical solution [on Cyprus issue]."
Criticizing the stance of the Nicos Anastasiades, leader of the Greek Cypriot administration, Akıncı said that Anastasiadis has been presenting different political solutions for different audiences ranging from decentralized federation to the two-state solution in a bid to fog the unification process up through uttering numerous terms on governance systems.
Akıncı emphasized that regardless of the political model, the Greek side has been denying the political equality and the right to the effective participation of the Turkish Cypriots. "We will continue our resoluteness both on the table and on the ground," he added. The Mediterranean island has been divided since 1974 when decades of violence against the island's Turks were followed by a Greek Cypriot coup and Ankara's intervention as a guarantor power. It has seen an on-and-off peace process in recent years, including the latest initiative in Switzerland under the auspices of guarantor countries Turkey, Greece and the U.K., collapsing in 2017.
