Ersin Tatar responds to Israeli attacks, calls them 'genocide'

TRNC President Tatar held a press conference following his meetings in Afyonkarahisar. Referring to a conference he gave to university students as part of his program, President Tatar stated that their new policy on Cyprus is not based on a federal model, but rather on a two-state solution.

''WE WILL NEVER ABANDON OUR RED LINES''

President Tatar said, “We explained the history of Cyprus, the conditions it is currently in, the importance of Cyprus for the Republic of Turkey, our Eastern Mediterranean policy, and our new policy, which is that an agreement in Cyprus can no longer be reached through a federal-based solution, but only through a two-state solution. While expressing all of this, we also emphasized that the presence of the guarantor of the Turkish Cypriot people and the presence of Turkish soldiers in Cyprus are extremely important for us to live there in peace and security. We told our students that we will never abandon these red lines.”

''WE EXPERIENCED SIMILAR SITUATIONS IN CYPRUS''

Stating that he informed the youth about the attacks carried out by Israel against Palestine, President Tatar said:

“We expressed that we are watching with great concern the events that have turned into a genocide, as well as Israel's actions and attacks against innocent Palestine. We shared that, just as in Turkey, we declared a 3-day mourning period in Cyprus last week, and we conveyed our determination to the entire Palestinian people against what Israel has done. We shared with our youth that we also experienced similar situations in Cyprus in the past, but our greatest stroke of luck was that our motherland, the Republic of Turkey, was able to intervene in Cyprus with the 1974 Cyprus Peace Operation, which is why we are able to continue our existence today.”

''WE ARE SEEKING A PERMANENT SOLUTION''

Finally, in his statement, President Tatar provided information about the work being done regarding the electricity problem in Cyprus, saying, “Today, in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, we are facing tremendous global warming in this region, as we do every year. This, in a way, brings drought to the agenda frequently. Again, with the support of our Turkey, we brought water to Cyprus from Anamur through hanging pipes as a result of many years of work. And this Anatolian water flows continuously to Cyprus from the shores of Kyrenia to the Geçitköy Dam. 75 million cubic meters of water flow uninterruptedly every year. Now, work is underway to find a permanent solution to the energy issue by bringing electricity via cable.”

President Tatar was accompanied at the press conference by Governor Assoc. Prof. Dr. Kübra Güran Yiğitbaşı and Mayor Mehmet Zeybek.