CHP leader: TRNC should be recognised as an independent state
THE world should recognise the TRNC as an independent state, the leader of Turkey’s main opposition party has said.
The comments were made by Republican People’s Party (CHP) leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu during a recent visit to North Cyprus, during which he met with President Ersin Tatar, Foreign Minister Tahsin Ertuğruloğlu, Parliament Speaker Önder Sennaroğlu and political party leaders.
Mr Kılıçdaroğlu and his delegation also visited the mausoleums of Dr Fazıl Küçük and Rauf Denktaş.
During his meeting with President Tatar, Mr Kılıçdaroğlu said: “At the end of 50 years of a struggle, we want the TRNC to emerge as an independent state, to be recognised and to become one of the respected countries of the world. This is our greatest desire.”
He added: “We are ready to fulfil any duty that falls on us. Cyprus policy is a national cause in Turkey. There is no difference of opinion between political parties. With its independence, constant strengthening of economic power and making a name for itself with the students it educates, the TRNC is a beautiful country.”
Mr Tatar, thanking Mr Kılıçdaroğlu for his visit, said: “The scales have tipped in such a way that it is not possible for us to carry on a healthy existence in the EU within a single sovereignty, especially when Turkey is not an EU member.”
He stated that the policy of the Turkish Cypriot side is “two separate independent states living side by side based on sovereign equality” and continued: “When we look from Cyprus, we see Turkey as a whole. There may be different opinions, but Cyprus is a national cause. For this national cause, I think that a two-state solution in Cyprus is in our common interest.”
Mr Kılıçdaroğlu also met the family of murdered Turkish Cypriot journalist Kutlu Adalı, who was shot dead in 1996. A fresh investigation into the unsolved crime has been launched in North Cyprus and Turkey.