President Ersin Tatar has said that a humanitarian tragedy was being experienced in Ukraine following the invasion launched against the country by Russia.

Speaking at an event on Thursday, Tatar said that numerous lives had been lost in the conflict which started on Thursday, resulting in a new tragedy in Europe.

He said that it was times like these that demonstrated how important motherland Turkiye’s guarantees were for the freedom and security of the Turkish Cypriot people and the TRNC.

Tatar also accused the US, NATO and other western countries of abandoning the Ukrainian people.

Reminding that the Republic of Turkiye had intervened in Cyprus in 1974 on the basis of its rights stemming from the Treaty of Guarantees, Tatar said that there has been no bloodshed in Cyprus since then.

“Therefore we must all appreciate the importance of peace and security,” he added.