President Ersin Tatar on Sunday said that the continuation of Turkiye’s guarantees in Cyprus and the sovereignty of the Turkish Cypriot people were the Turkish Cypriot sides redlines.

Speaking at a conference organised by the Girne American University to mark the anniversary of the Khojaly Massacre, Tatar reminded that the Turkish Cypriot people had been victim to similar atrocities in the past.

The conference was attended by MPs from Azerbaijan who are visiting the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC).

The Khojaly massacre was the mass killing of Azerbaijanis, mostly civilians, by local irregular Armenian forces during the 1992 conflict.

On the night of  February 26 1992, the Armenian forces seized the town of Khojaly, taking prisoner or killing the civilians remaining in it.

“The TRNC’s foundations were laid and it borders drawn following the arrival of our heroic Turkish troops in 1974, 11 years after Greek Cypriots unleashed attacks against Turkish Cypriots. Since then there has been peace and stability in the country. Today we are able to look into the future with hope as a result the strength that emerges from the union of the Turkish world,” he said.

Tatar also pointed out that Azerbaijan’s recent victory at Nagorno Karabakh had been celebrated with joy in the TRNC.

“These massacres are now a thing of the past but they must never be forgotten,” he said.

Touching upon the Cyprus Issue, President Ersin Tatar said that the TRNC continue to develop despite the embargoes and the pressures exerted on it by the Greek-Greek Cypriot duo with the support of motherland Turkiye.

“We must know our history very well and never forget it. Otherwise we can never take steps for the future,” he said, adding that the Turkish Cypriot people desired a settlement that would ensure the preservation of its culture, identity and nationality.

He repeated that the recognition of the Turkish Cypriot peoples’ sovereign equality and equal international status was a prerequisite to returning to the negotiating table.

Tatar also drew attention to the strong bonds that existed between the TRNC and Azeribaijan, expressing the hope that these relations will continue to grow stronger.