The self‑styled ‘foreign minister’ in the north Tahsin Ertugruloglu raised a number of controversial points in statements about recent tensions in Pyla where Turkish Cypriot ‘police’ have been making daily and repeat incursions into the buffer zone.
In an interview with Kıbrıs Postası TV, he said the Arsos-Pyla road project would be completed sooner or later and repeated claims that the Pyla plateau was not part of the buffer zone but belonged to the Turkish Cypriot breakaway entity.
Work on the road was frozen after Turkish Cypriot security forces injured UN peacekeepers who were trying to stop construction of the road in the buffer zone on August 18, 2023. The episode drew widespread international criticism, leading to a freeze in construction.
Then UN Special Representative Colin Stewart had appeared to reach a compromise proposal between the two communities on the island that was supposed to create a ‘win-win’ scenario, but it soon unravelled, putting the ‘deal’ also in deep freeze.
Now, Ertugruloglu has brought the issue back on the agenda, following heightened tensions around Pyla this month, when Turkish Cypriot ‘police’ started making repeat incursions into the buffer zone, prompting increased patrols and monitoring by the UN Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP). The peacekeeping mission briefed the UN Security Council on the violations in the buffer zone, while calling for calm and a return to the status quo ante.
‘Greek Cypriot audacity and British peacekeepers’
“We are experiencing problems because of Greek Cypriot audacity, their attitude of ‘I am the owner of the island’, and the submissive stance of the UN,” Ertuğruloğlu said. He added that the British were an additional problem in Pyla.
He noted that there are not only British soldiers at the Dhekelia Base, but also a British unit within UNFICYP, arguing that a British factor was also involved in developments.
Recalling what happened during the construction of the Pyla road, Ertuğruloğlu noted that the physical altercation was with British peacekeeping soldiers.
“The Pyla road will be built sooner or later,” he said.
‘Pyla plateau belongs to Turkish Cypriots’
Regarding the area on the Pyla plateau, opposite the British Bases and beyond the Turkish Cypriot cemetery, which he calls ‘Çayhan-Düzü’, Ertugruloglu argued this constitutes Turkish Cypriot territory.
“Because of a passive policy, land that belongs to us was perceived as buffer zone land. The UN also embraced this,” he said, adding that the UN does so under Greek Cypriot pressure.
Ertugruloglu raised the issue of the Cyprus Republic Veterinary Service trying to inspect Turkish Cypriot farms in the area and vaccinate animals there, saying that this would only be allowed if they enter through designated crossing points.
Regarding the increased presence of Turkish Cypriot ‘police’ in the area, and reciprocal increase in patrols by the UN, he said: “The Turkish Cypriot side also gave the message that ‘this is not an open inn – if you overstep your bounds, we will take the necessary measures.’”
On diplomacy, Ertuğruloğlu singled out equality, having a backbone and determination as crucial elements. If peace is desired, the message must be conveyed that “if necessary, we will fight,” he said.
Equal sovereignty or sovereign equality
Referring to remarks by the Turkish President at the Antalya Diplomacy Forum that there are “two separate peoples and two separate states on the island”, Ertugruloglu said this approach does not align with the policy pursued by Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhürman.
He said sovereignty can be expressed either as equal sovereignty or sovereign equality, arguing that sovereign equality is the policy supported by Turkey and by himself: “one island, two sovereignties, two peoples”. Equal sovereignty, he said, implies “one state and a single international legal personality”, which he said, does not fully align with Turkey’s position.
It is incorrect to claim that Erhurman’s policy is aligned with Turkey, said Ertugruloglu.
Sources: Kıbrıs Postası, CNA