Two months later, on July 20, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will go to Cyprus, more precisely, to its Turkish part. The day before, he said that he was preparing to make an appeal from there to the whole world. What important thing will Erdogan tell the world, Vestnik Kavkaza asked Turkologists.
Top Turkish officials visit the self-proclaimed Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) annually on July 20. On this day in 1974, the Turkish army entered the northern part of the island. The Turks living there did not want the island to be annexed to Greece, as the authorities in Athens wanted, so Ankara used force.
There are still two months before Erdogan's trip, but the Turkish president has already made political analysts ponder, saying that his appeal from North Nicosia concerns not only the island divided between Greeks and Turks, but the whole world.
Doctor of Historical Sciences and visiting professor at the Institute of Asian and African Countries of the Lomonosov Moscow State University, Mehmet Perincek, believes that the Turkish leader will urge the partner countries to recognize the independence of Northern Cyprus.
"The accession of Northern Cyprus to Turkey is not on the agenda, Ankara does not have such a plan yet. Now Ankara will try to call on other countries - Russia, Iran, its potential partners and allies - to recognize the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus," he said.
The historian drew attention to the fact that in the Mediterranean Sea a large coalition was formed against Turkey, consisting of the United States, France, Greece, Cyprus and the United Arab Emirates. They are conducting military exercises to deprive Turkey of the ability to extract gas and, in general, to block its freedom of action in the region. Ankara resists the penetration of the Atlantic powers into Eurasia.
"Turkey stands at the gates of Eurasia. It should be emphasized that Turkey is resisting in the Eastern Mediterranean and on the Cyprus issue not only for the sake of its national interests, but also in the name of security and stabilization of the entire Eurasian space. The United States surrounds Turkey in the Eastern Mediterranean and threatens Russia. Washington has a strategy aimed against Russia and Turkey in the Black and Mediterranean Seas, "he says.
Therefore, Perincek believes that Ankara and Moscow have a common interest in containing Washington, which is trying to lay siege to them.
"Moscow and Ankara need joint action to counter this threat. The Eastern Mediterranean and the Black Sea have become part of a united front on which a geopolitical confrontation is taking place. Polarization in the region is observed not only between Turkey and Greece, but also between Russia and Ukraine. For the Atlantic camp Greece and Ukraine are nothing more than pawns. Therefore, Moscow and Russia should consider the Cyprus, Crimean, Eastern Mediterranean and Black Sea issues together, and they should find a common language. If Russia decides to recognize Northern Cyprus, then Turkey can recognize Crimea as part of the Russian Federation ", - said the historian.
Yashar Niyazbayev, editor-in-chief of MK Turkey, author of the telegram channel Turkey's Agenda, has two versions as to what Erdogan will say on July 20. The first is the need to support the independence of Palestine, the second is the status of Northern Cyprus.
"President Erdogan has created an intrigue. This means he will say something important. Considering that he warned that this applies not only to Turkey, but the whole world, thoughts come to mind, first of all, about the status of the Turkish part of Cyprus and about Palestine. But also the possible discovery of natural resources off the coast of Cyprus, although this does not quite attract the “interest of the whole world.” Therefore, there remain two topics Palestine and Cyprus, ”he said.
As for Northern Cyprus itself, the expert does not exclude the annexation of part of the island to Turkey: "Will Erdogan be able to announce the annexation of Northern Cyprus to Turkey? Anything is possible. But will Ankara be ready to face a reaction, with sanctions, with pressure from the world community now, when is the country trying to get out of the protracted economic crisis? These are the main questions that remain a mystery to Erdogan's plans. "
We will remind, in November 2020, when visiting Northern Cyprus, Erdogan said that the solution to the conflict between the Turks and Greeks is possible on the basis of the principle of two states. "Cyprus has two different peoples and two separate states. The decision on the two states should be discussed on the basis of sovereign equality," the politician said then.
