Turkey seeks joint solution on Cyprus issue

By Halil Sahin and Ali Korkmaz

IZMIR

Turkey seeks a joint solution on the Cyprus issue based on UN decisions, the parliament speaker said on Tuesday.

Speaking at the 8th Plenary Session of the Parliamentary Assembly of Turkic-Speaking Countries (TURKPA), Binali Yildirim said: "We expect a joint solution between the island's Turkish and Greek Cypriots based on UN decisions."

Yildirim added that Turkey has contributed to the UN and EU efforts on the Cyprus issue positively and will continue doing so in the future.

He said the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) has been fighting for its people's welfare and happiness for 35 years, since it declared independence.

Cyprus was divided into a Turkish Cypriot state in the north and a Greek Cypriot administration in the south after a 1974 military coup was followed by violence against the island’s Turkish people, and Turkey’s intervention as a guarantor power.

There has been an on-and-off peace process in recent years, the latest failed initiative having taken place in Crans-Montana, Switzerland in July 2017 under the auspices of guarantor countries Turkey, Greece and the U.K.