LEFKOSA, Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus

The foreign minister of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) on Tuesday criticized a US senator for his recent comments about Turkish military presence on the disputed island.

“We strongly condemn US Senator Bob Menendez’s statement about his goal to ‘see the last Turkish soldier leave the island,’” Tahsin Ertugruloglu said in a statement.

Ertugruloglu was referring to remarks made by the US official at a ceremony on Monday where he was presented the Grand Collar of the Order of Makarios III by the Greek Cypriot administration.

He said Menendez is “known for his hostility to Turkey” and has “led the preparation of many draft resolutions against motherland Turkey and the TRNC.”

The foreign minister said Menendez’s support for Greece and the Greek Cypriot administration for personal and political gains has damaged Turkish-US relations.

The US senator has also undermined efforts to restore trust and stability on the island and in the region, Ertugruloglu added.

“We would like to remind Menendez that the Turkish military intervened on the island to prevent the decimation of the Turkish Cypriot people, who were subjected to all kinds of inhumane practices, including mass murder, by the Greek side, especially between 1963 and 1974,” he asserted.

Neither he nor his words make sense

It is an undeniable fact that Turkey intervened to fulfill its obligations under the 1960 Treaty of Guarantee and the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) are on the island at the request of the Turkish Cypriot people to prevent a repeat of their past suffering, Ertugruloglu said.

“Demanding that the TSK, who have ensured a peaceful and secure environment on the island since 1974, cease their presence means surrendering the island to war and Greek brutality again,” the TRNC foreign minister said.

Such calls can only come from people like Menendez, who have little knowledge of Cyprus and its history, and try to disguise their ignorance with hostility towards Turkey, he added.

“Neither he [Menendez] nor his words make sense,” Ertugruloglu said.

Decades-long dispute

Cyprus has been mired in a decades-long dispute between Greek and Turkish Cypriots, despite a series of diplomatic efforts by the UN to achieve a comprehensive settlement.

Ethnic attacks starting in the early 1960s forced Turkish Cypriots to withdraw into enclaves for their safety.

In 1974, a Greek Cypriot coup aimed at Greece's annexation led to Turkey's military intervention as a guarantor power to protect Turkish Cypriots from persecution and violence. As a result, the TRNC was founded in 1983.

It has seen an on-and-off peace process in recent years, including a failed 2017 initiative in Switzerland under the auspices of guarantor countries Turkey, Greece, and the UK.

The Greek Cypriot administration entered the EU in 2004, the same year Greek Cypriots thwarted the UN's Annan plan to end the longstanding dispute.

A UN-led unofficial Cyprus conference was held in Geneva this April to seek common ground to negotiate a lasting solution to the decades-old conflict.

Guarantor countries Turkey, Greece, and the UK also took part in the meeting.

* Writing by Merve Berker