Türkiye rejects references made by the Greek Cypriot administration for distorting historical and current realities on the island of Cyprus, Foreign Ministry spokesman Öncü Keçeli said Thursday.
In a statement shared on X, Keçeli said remarks using terms such as “occupation,” “invasion” and “division,” voiced during an event held on Jan. 7, 2026, to mark the Greek Cypriot administration’s assumption of the rotating presidency of the European Union, were incompatible with both historical facts and present-day realities on the island.
Keçeli said the only act that could be described as an “occupation” occurred in 1963, when the Greek Cypriot side unilaterally violated the constitution and seized the institutions of the partnership state, effectively excluding the Turkish Cypriot people and stripping them of their inherent rights.
He said the EU’s continued failure to acknowledge the existence and rights of Turkish Cypriots reflects a double standard that contradicts the bloc’s stated commitment to fundamental human values.
Keçeli also said that despite public assurances to the contrary, the Greek Cypriot administration has from the outset sought to exploit its EU presidency to advance what he described as distorted narratives and uncompromising positions on the Cyprus issue, further demonstrating why the EU cannot serve as a neutral or constructive actor in efforts to reach a settlement.
