Türkiye, Northern Cyprus continue with joint military exercise

LEFKOSA, Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus

Türkiye and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) on Wednesday continued joint exercises in Northern Cyprus.

The naval part of the Martyr Ensign Caner Gonyeli-2023 Search and Rescue Invitation Exercise started with the participation of civilian and military elements.

The two-day drill started on Tuesday with the land phase.

The aim of the exercise is to protect the rights and interests of Türkiye and the TRNC in the Search and Rescue (SAR) area in the Eastern Mediterranean.

It also aims to assist in the official registration and strengthening of the sovereignty of the TRNC, and to draw public attention to the value that is given to search and rescue activities and to SAR region boundaries.

Thirteen military representatives from six countries – Azerbaijan, Djibouti, Kosovo, Qatar, Libya, and Pakistan – are attending the naval phase of the exercise as observers.

The sea phase of the exercise will end after the search and rescue activity, which will be carried out within the scope of a generic scenario, outside the territorial waters of the TRNC and in the Turkish Search and Rescue Region, off the coast of Famagusta.

Cyprus has been mired in a decades-long dispute between Turkish Cypriots and Greek Cypriots despite a series of diplomatic efforts by the UN to achieve a comprehensive settlement.

Türkiye fully supports a two-state solution on the island based on sovereign equality and equal international status between its two states.