TRNC president backs Turkish President Erdogan's Eastern Mediterranean warning

Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) President Tufan Erhurman voiced support on Thursday for Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's remarks on the Eastern Mediterranean and Cyprus, saying any attempt to exclude the Turkish Cypriot people and Türkiye from issues related to security, energy, and maritime jurisdiction will not succeed.

Commenting on Erdogan's statement that "If the rights and interests of Türkiye and the Turkish Cypriots in the Eastern Mediterranean are targeted, I want it to be known that our response will be very clear and very harsh," Erhurman said, "The statement made by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of the Republic of Türkiye in this regard is very appropriate."

Speaking at a press conference titled "200 Days at the Presidency" at the TRNC Presidency, Erhurman outlined his administration's activities and addressed recent developments regarding Cyprus and the Eastern Mediterranean.

Erhurman noted that they had participated in the Antalya Diplomacy Forum and meetings of the Organization of Turkic States (OTS) in Kazakhstan to use diplomacy in favor of the Turkish Cypriot people.

"Any move aimed at excluding or leaving out the Turkish Cypriot people and the Republic of Türkiye on issues of security, energy, and maritime jurisdiction cannot achieve results," he said.

Erhurman also said they remain in constant consultation with Türkiye on the Cyprus issue and stressed that the Turkish Cypriot people maintain a strong will for a solution.

He added that negotiations on Cyprus are not conducted merely for the sake of negotiations and said the public would continue to be informed about talks with the UN and the Greek Cypriot administration.

Any military alliance targeting the rights and interests of Türkiye and the TRNC has "no chance of success," Türkiye's National Defense Ministry also said on Thursday.

The ministry added that the Turkish Armed Forces have the strength and determination to give "the harshest response" to hostile actions threatening the security of Turkish Cypriots.

Türkiye is closely monitoring "the provocation aimed at destabilizing and escalating tensions in the Eastern Mediterranean," said the ministry, adding: “The agreement signed between France, which has no guarantor status in Cyprus, and the Greek Cypriot Administration, which aims to unilaterally alter the delicate balance on the island and disregards the will and sovereign equal rights of the Turkish Cypriots, is contrary to the 1960 Cyprus Agreements and international law.”

*Writing by Gizem Nisa Demir in Istanbul