The United Kingdom, a guarantor country for the Cyprus issue, has been a "mere spectator" to the situation on the island, the president of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) has said.
"I regret having to say this, but I find it disappointing that a guarantor nation, which witnesses so much injustice and must be neutral, continues to act in such a careless manner," Ersin Tatar told Anadolu Agency (AA) on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York.
"The United Kingdom remained a spectator as the conditions in Cyprus occurred in favor of the Greek Cypriots but against the Turkish Cypriots. It has not moved a finger, because they have bases in the south, they have their own interests," he added.
Tatar also criticized the United States' decision to lift the arms embargo on the Greek Cypriot administration for the 2023 fiscal year, calling it "unacceptable."
He said the decision would exacerbate the anxiety and tension in the region with further arming of the island.
The Turkish Cypriot president urged the U.S. to review its decision, saying: "If they deliver these arms to (Southern Cyprus), it would really cause some undesired tensions in Cyprus."
The United States' decision to lift its arms embargo on the Greek Cypriot administration will "embolden" it and hence lead to an escalation in the region, the TRNC said last week. Türkiye also "strongly" condemned the decision and warned that the move would harm efforts for a Cyprus peace deal, lead to an arms race on the island and undermine regional stability.
The U.S. State Department on Friday announced that it lifted defense trade restrictions on the Greek Cypriot administration for the 2023 fiscal year.
"Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken determined and certified to Congress that the Republic of Cyprus has met the necessary conditions under relevant legislation to allow the approval of exports, re-exports, and transfers of defense articles," according to State Department spokesperson Ned Price.
The U.S. policy requires the denial of exports, re-exports or transfers of defense articles to Cyprus unless the president determines and certifies to congressional committee authorities they are cooperating with Washington to implement anti-money laundering regulations and financial regulatory oversight reforms.
The U.S. enacted the embargo in 1987 to prevent a potential arms race from harming peace talks with Turkish Cypriots. Barred access to U.S. weapons, Greek Cyprus turned to Russia to procure Mi-35 attack helicopters, T-80 tanks and Tor-M1 anti-aircraft missile systems.
Türkiye has invited its NATO ally the United States to adopt a neutral stance on the Cyprus issue on numerous occasions.
No tripartite meeting
Tatar said there will be no tripartite meeting with U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and Greek Cypriot leader Nikos Anastasiadis in New York this year, as the Greek Cypriot side will hold elections in February 2023 and Anastasiadis will not run for the leadership.
He said he will hold a one-on-one meeting with Guterres later on Saturday and will tell the U.N. chief that an independent, sovereign state in Northern Cyprus is the only solution to the issue which cannot be solved without Türkiye.
Cyprus has been mired in a decadeslong dispute between Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots, despite a series of diplomatic efforts by the U.N. to achieve a comprehensive settlement.
Ethnic attacks starting in the early 1960s forced Turkish Cypriots to withdraw into enclaves for their safety.
In 1974, a Greek Cypriot coup aimed at Greece's annexation led to Türkiye's military intervention as a guarantor power to protect Turkish Cypriots from persecution and violence. As a result, the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus was founded in 1983.
It has seen an on-and-off peace process in recent years, including a failed 2017 initiative in Switzerland under the auspices of guarantor countries Türkiye, Greece and the United Kingdom.
The Greek Cypriot administration entered the European Union in 2004, the same year Greek Cypriots thwarted the U.N. Annan Plan to end the longstanding dispute.
Today, the Turkish side supports a solution based on the equal sovereignty of the two states on the island. On the other hand, the Greek side wants a federal solution based on the hegemony of the Greeks.
Türkiye, which has the longest continental coastline in the Eastern Mediterranean, has rejected maritime boundary claims by Greece and the Greek Cypriot administration, stressing that their excessive claims violate the sovereign rights of Türkiye and the Turkish Cypriots.