Ankara criticizes UN statement on Cyprus

ANKARA

The Turkish Foreign Ministry has strongly criticized the recent statement by the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), which proposed a federal solution to the long-standing Cyprus problem.

In a statement released on July 13, the ministry asserted that the UNSC's stance aimed to appease the Greek Cypriot side, violating the principle of impartiality and rendering the proposal unacceptable.

According to the ministry's statement, the council's insistence on a settlement model that the Turkish Cypriot side openly opposes demonstrates "a detachment from the realities on the ground." It emphasized that such a model had been attempted numerous times in the past and had failed to yield positive results.

The statement underscored that the federal settlement goal "no longer represents the sovereign will of the Turkish Cypriot people."

"Instead of promoting a settlement in Cyprus, this Security Council stance, which increasingly deviates from the basis provided by the U.N. secretary-general's reports, is fueling the Greek Cypriot side's intransigent attitude that disregards the Turkish Cypriots, the ancient and original co-owners of the island," the ministry stated.

Ankara expects the Security Council to acknowledge the withdrawal of support by the Turkish Cypriots from the previously discussed settlement model, it added.

"We emphasize once again that a just, lasting and sustainable settlement in Cyprus must reflect the will of the two peoples on the island and cannot be imposed by third parties."

Cyprus has been mired in a decades-long dispute between Greek and Turkish Cypriots, despite a series of diplomatic efforts by the U.N. to achieve a comprehensive settlement.