Which of the TRNC leader's statements is correct?

TRNC President Tufan Erhürman reiterated his stance a few days ago regarding Turkish Cypriots continuing their international contacts and remaining at the negotiating table on the Cyprus issue. Erhürman emphasized that he would not give up on his people's rights, security, and equality throughout his term. This is a correct stance. 

The same Erhürman also said the following in recent weeks: “No matter what happens, our patience will not run out. No matter what happens, we will not give up on the negotiations… We will neither succumb to our anger, nor lose our composure, nor will our patience run out.” This is an incorrect stance. 

Just as the TRNC leader's words regarding the equality and sovereignty of the Turks on the island are correct, his words that they will not give up on the negotiations no matter what are equally incorrect. Because this stance does not show his patience and determination, but rather his readiness to make concessions. 

In the approximately 3-hour meeting held by the two leaders on the island on August 26, it was decided that meetings would be held once a week, and more often if necessary, for a lasting solution on the island. 

We see that United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is quite enthusiastic about finding a solution to the Cyprus issue. But is he as well-intentioned and sincere as he is enthusiastic? No. 

Is there any difference between Guterres and Kofi Annan, one of the previous UN secretaries-general whom we remember from the plan named after his surname, regarding Cyprus? No. 

Is he sweetening the Annan Plan with sugar sauce and chocolate sauce and bringing it before us once again? Yes. 

WHAT HAS CHANGED FROM THE ANNAN PLAN TO GUTERRES?

We remember that when the Annan Plan was voted on April 24, 2004, a wide segment of society in Turkey, from the government to big capital, had mobilized for a 'yes' vote. The US and the EU also very much wanted the plan to pass. Great pressure had been placed on the Turks on the island to vote 'yes'. The founding president of the TRNC, a national hero, and the last distinguished representative of the Turkish statesman tradition, Rauf Denktaş, was against the plan. Turkey was not behind Denktaş. When he wanted to give a speech in the Turkish Grand National Assembly, he was blocked. In public, he was scolded with phrases like "Let him go and speak in his own parliament," "Tell him to review his advisors," and "the man who blocks the solution." Since he could not make his voice heard in the media, he appeared as a guest actor in the TV series 'Valley of the Wolves' (Kurtlar Vadisi) to explain his concerns. In the end, because the Turkish side voted 65 percent 'yes' and the Greek side voted 75 percent 'no', the plan was rejected. 

The Annan Plan was entirely in favor of the Greeks. The Greeks were aware of the plan during its preparation phase. British and European diplomats were informing the Greeks and Greece about the content of the plan. Turkey supported the plan without reading and examining it in its entirety, and even said regarding the gaps in the plan, "We trust UN Secretary-General Annan very much. Let him fill the gaps in the plan." The government announced its support even before the plan was fully translated. Liberals, left-liberals, the "it's not enough but yes" team, along with the "Yes be annem" (Yes, my dear) team on the island and the "The time has come, Europe in the spring" choir, were behind the government. Mehmet Ali Talat, who would later be elected president of the TRNC—whom we also remember for his statement "If I were in Turkey, I would vote for the AKP" and who went down in history with his words "An independent TRNC was a dream"—was working tooth and nail for a 'yes' vote, along with the other person who would become president, Mustafa Akıncı. 

In the 22 years that have passed, has the attitude of the Greeks changed? No. 

THE TALAT, AKINCI, ERHÜRMAN LINE AND THE REALITY OF THE ISLAND 

Now we see it again. The Greek side wants Güzelyurt, Mesarya, and Maraş, which are TRNC territory, to be given to them. Furthermore, they demand that the right of guarantee of Turkey, one of the three guarantor countries on the island, be terminated and that all Turkish soldiers in Cyprus be withdrawn. Even if the Greeks on the island and Athens say they are willing to accept a bi-zonal, bi-communal structure on the island under the name of a loose federation, in the long run, they desire to possess the entire island by themselves and to assimilate the Turks. They do not see the TRNC as an equal and sovereign state. 

Let us not forget, saying "People on the island are equal people, they have equal rights" is one thing, saying "Turkish Cypriots and Greek Cypriots are equal" is another, and saying "The TRNC is an equal and sovereign state. It is the state of the Turkish Cypriots" is something else entirely. If the Greeks achieve their goals, they also want to be a NATO member. The boss of NATO, the US, is also warm to this, of course. 

The loose federation thesis also does not contain a real partnership between the two sides and the two peoples. Turkish Cypriots are seen as a minority, as in previous plans. Unfortunately, the readiness of TRNC President Erhürman to make concessions further encourages the Greek Cypriots and Athens. 

There are several reasons for the uncompromising attitude of the Greeks, who voted 75 percent 'no' to the Annan Plan in the 2004 referendum and want to own the entire island immediately. First, they receive great support from the US. Second, since they are members of the European Union under the name of the Republic of Cyprus and representing the entire island, they receive great support from the EU. Third, those who govern the TRNC are ready to make concessions, and some are even quite eager. Fourth, the Cyprus issue has been low on Turkey's agenda for a long time. The sensitivity of the Turkish Nation, which was once of one heart on this issue—whether rightist or leftist, Islamist or nationalist—and said "either partition or death," has eroded significantly regarding Cyprus. Fifth, a significant portion of the citizens in Cyprus, especially the youth, want a solution as soon as possible due to anxiety about the future, anger at the economic situation, weariness and hopelessness stemming from being excluded by the world, and a desire to integrate with the world. Because the TRNC passport is not recognized by any state other than Turkey, many Turkish Cypriots obtain the passport of the Greek side, and they do so willingly and voluntarily. 

GREECE BLACKMAILED THE EUROPEAN UNION 

Greece, on the other hand, uses its position within the EU to block a healthy, fair, and lasting solution on the island. Let us remember, Athens imposed the membership of Southern Cyprus on the European Union in violation of international treaties. It announced that if Southern Cyprus was not made an EU member representing the entire island and under the name of the Republic of Cyprus, it would oppose the enlargement of the EU and veto the membership of new members (those coming from Eastern and Central Europe). In other words, it blackmailed the EU and threatened the EU. In the end, Athens got what it wanted. 

Greece does not just state its own thoughts; it ensures that the EU adopts and states these thoughts as well. Indeed, the EU declared the resolution of the Cyprus issue as a condition for the membership of Turkey, which it will never make a member, years ago. 

The Greek Cypriot Administration of Southern Cyprus, which is an EU member, is very close to the US and also to Europe. It is very close to Israel and also to France. It is very close to the United Arab Emirates and also to Qatar. We already know its closeness to the UK, with the two British bases in the south. As its relations with the Greeks on the island have grown closer, the US, which first lifted the arms embargo and then tightened military cooperation, is also building a military base of its own in the south. The US knows very well the importance of Cyprus, which is also referred to in international relations as an "unsinkable aircraft carrier in the Mediterranean" and the "lock of the Eastern Mediterranean," for Eurasia, for the Middle East, for Israel, for energy resources, and for energy transport. 

The reality of the island is this: There are two different peoples. Therefore, there must be two separate, equal, independent, and sovereign states. (Turkey, in the current situation, does not recognize the Greek Cypriot Administration of Southern Cyprus as a state). Turkey's effective and actual guarantee and the presence of Turkish soldiers on the island must continue. 

A lasting, fair, sustainable, and stable peace on the island depends on accepting this simple reality and establishing an order accordingly.