EU Condemns Attempts to Legitimize Turkish Cypriot Secessionist Entity

The European Union has expressed strong disapproval of the Organization of Turkic States (OTS) for attempting to grant legitimacy to the Turkish Cypriot secessionist entity, officially known as the “Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus” (TRNC), by awarding it observer status at OTS summits. In a statement by EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell, the EU reiterated its stance that it only recognizes the Republic of Cyprus as a sovereign entity under international law.

These efforts by the OTS, most recently evident at its summit in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, were met with EU criticism for directly contradicting the UN Charter's principle of territorial integrity, which several OTS members have publicly supported. The EU views the OTS’s observer status for the Turkish Cypriot entity as an attempt to challenge Cyprus’s territorial integrity and noted that such moves do not align with established international agreements.

The EU's position remains firm, based on United Nations Security Council resolutions that clearly recognize the Republic of Cyprus as the sole legitimate government of the island. The EU statement follows a history of diplomatic tensions surrounding the status of Northern Cyprus, which declared itself the “Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus” in 1983 but has only been recognized by Turkey. No other nation, nor the UN, acknowledges the TRNC as an independent state.

Cyprus has been divided since 1974, following a Turkish military intervention in response to a Greek-led coup on the island. This division resulted in the Turkish Cypriot-controlled north and the internationally recognized Republic of Cyprus in the south, which joined the European Union in 2004. Despite numerous attempts at reunification talks mediated by the United Nations, the two sides remain divided, and the northern region continues to operate under Turkish administration.