Turkish Parliament Speaker Binali Yildirim speaks during "TURKPA in the First Ten Years and the Future of Inter-Parliamentary Cooperation: New Approaches to Cooperation" conference within the 8th Plenary Session of Parliamentary Assembly of Turkic-Speaking Countries (TURKPA) on November 20, 2018 in Izmir, Turkey.
( Utku Uçrak - Anadolu Agency )
Ankara
By Halil Sahin and Ali Korkmaz
IZMIR
Turkey seeks a joint solution on the Cyprus issue based on UN decisions, the parliament speaker said on Tuesday.
Speaking at the 8th Plenary Session of the Parliamentary Assembly of Turkic-Speaking Countries (TURKPA), Binali Yildirim said: "We expect a joint solution between the island's Turkish and Greek Cypriots based on UN decisions."
Yildirim added that Turkey has contributed to the UN and EU efforts on the Cyprus issue positively and will continue doing so in the future.
He said the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) has been fighting for its people's welfare and happiness for 35 years, since it declared independence.
Cyprus was divided into a Turkish Cypriot state in the north and a Greek Cypriot administration in the south after a 1974 military coup was followed by violence against the island’s Turkish people, and Turkey’s intervention as a guarantor power.
There has been an on-and-off peace process in recent years, the latest failed initiative having taken place in Crans-Montana, Switzerland in July 2017 under the auspices of guarantor countries Turkey, Greece and the U.K.
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