TRNC condemns EU appointment of Cyprus envoy as ‘provocative’

The Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) on Monday condemned the European Commission’s appointment of Executive Vice President Raffaele Fitto as its special representative for Cyprus, calling it “a provocative step” that exposed the EU’s biased approach to the Cyprus issue.

In a statement on US social media company X, the TRNC Foreign Ministry said the appointment was made without the consent of the Turkish Cypriot side and disregarded the will of the Turkish Cypriot people, calling it unlawful and “absolutely unacceptable.”

The ministry said the European Union had lost all “neutrality and credibility on the Cyprus issue” after unilaterally admitting the Greek Cypriot administration into the bloc in 2004 while ignoring the inherent rights and interests of the Turkish Cypriot people.

It added that the EU’s attempts, in coordination with the Greek Cypriot side, to pressure the Turkish Cypriots and create a fait accompli were “doomed to failure.”

The ministry said a lasting settlement to the Cyprus issue could only be achieved through cooperation based on the sovereign equality and equal international status of the two sides on the island.

It said the EU should first remove all restrictions on the Turkish Cypriot people if it wanted to demonstrate its credibility and sincerity in contributing to the Cyprus process.

The ministry said the Turkish Cypriot side would consider the EU’s actions “null and void” as long as the bloc continued to disregard the Turkish Cypriot people’s sovereign equality, equal international status and will.