Ministers from junior coalition party UBP withdraw from gov’t in Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus

Ministers from the center-right National Unity Party (UBP) in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), the junior partner in a coalition with the center-left Republican Turkish Party (CTP), have presented resignation letters to the prime minister, withdrawing from government on Monday.

Five UBP ministers quit after the party decided unanimously to withdraw from the government on Saturday.

UBP Chairman Hüseyin Ozgürgün had said that the party decided to withdraw from the government headed by Prime Minister Ömer Kalyoncu due to its inability to address the country's economic problems.

Özgürgün said that a recent move to pay civil servants' salaries in installments is what led to his party to withdraw.

Now with the UBP's departure, Kalyoncu is expected to resign and the race will be on to succeed him.

TRNC is in talks with the Greek Cypriot administration, and hopes have run high that a reunification agreement could be reached this year.

The UBP last year formed a coalition government with the Republican Turkish Party-United Forces (CTP-BG).

The CTP-BG currently has 20 seats in the Turkish Cypriot parliament, and the UBP has 18.