President Ersin Tatar welcomed the speech delivered by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan at the UN General Assembly.

President Tatar said, “Mr. Erdoğan by calling on the international community became our voice. We, in Cyprus, do not want more than our right. We expect the international community to approach our demand for sovereign equality and equal international status with an open mind and to help re-establish the balance that was disrupted in Cyprus after 1963-64.”

President Tatar said, “We are very pleased with the speech delivered by Turkish President Erdoğan, which strongly supports the views and new policy of the Turkish Cypriots”.

“As it is known, the Turkish Cypriots are a people who have been deprived of equal treatment and a voice in the international arena since 1963. While we continue to be victimized in the international arena, our right to express our views is either severely restricted or taken away completely. As one of the two equal owners of Cyprus and one of the two equal peoples who are parties to the Cyprus problem, the Turkish Cypriot people expect to have equal rights to speak and they deserve to be respected in the international arena, especially in the UN” said Tatar.

Pointing out that the leader of the Greek Cypriot administration Nicos Anastasiades, who will speak at the UN General Assembly, will repeat his well-known views and propaganda against the Turkish Cypriot side and Turkey, President Tatar said “it is possible to see and understand this from the news. Right and justice require us to have an equal say on the same platform, namely the UN General Assembly and other UN organs. Mr. Erdoğan has been our voice and our strength by calling the international community on this issue. We thank him,” he said.

Touching upon the meetings he has been carrying out in New York, President Tatar stated that during his meeting with the Permanent Representation of the Russian Federation to the UN, the Turkish Cypriot side’s attitude and position were explained to them, and that they will continue to express their views and thoughts during the meetings they will hold in the coming days.

Also evaluating the developments in the Eastern Mediterranean Tatar said, “The preservation of the balance in the region, especially the Turkish-Greek balance, is possible with verbal and substantive respect for the legitimate rights and interests of Turkey, which has the longest coast in this region.”