LEFKOSA, Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus
Cypriot Turks want an agreement which is permanent, livable and based on existing realities, the president of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus said on Wednesday.
Speaking at an event to brief the public about ongoing Cyprus talks, Dervis Eroglu said that the Greek Cypriot administration had left the negation table.
Eroglu was referring to the Greek Cypriot administration’s suspension of the most recent talks with the north on Oct. 7, after Turkey sent an oil and gas research vessel on a mission off the Cyprus coast.
The move to send a research vessel, with two navy ships, was intended to show that Turkey objected to the Greek Cypriot administration's plans to unilaterally exploit hydrocarbon resources off the island.
Eroglu, who will run as an independent candidate in the TRNC’s presidential election in April 2015, said that the "Barbaros Hayrettin" seismic vessel had been conducting explorations on Turkish Cypriots’ behalf.
While the European Union recognizes the Greek Cypriot administration on the island, only Turkey recognizes the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus diplomatically.
The negotiations between the Turkish and Greek Cypriots resumed after a two-year pause in February 2013. The previous round of talks collapsed in 2012.
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