Turkish Cypriot leader, Turkish foreign minister meet

By Muhammet Ikbal Arslan

LEFKOSA, Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (AA) - Turkish Cypriot President Mustafa Akinci on Saturday received Mevlut Cavusoglu, the Turkish foreign minister.

"As a guarantor country [for Cyprus], we are committed to protecting all the rights and interests of the Turkish Cypriots," Cavusoglu said on Twitter.

Delegations from both sides were also present at the closed-door meeting in the Turkish Cypriot capital Lefkosa, which lasted about 45 minutes.

In 1974, after a coup was launched aimed at Cyprus’ annexation by Greece, Ankara had to intervene as a guarantor power. In 1983, the TRNC was founded.

The decades since have seen several attempts to resolve the dispute, all of which ended in failure. The latest attempt, in which guarantor countries Turkey, Greece, and the U.K. took part, ended in 2017 in Switzerland.

In 2004, a plan by then UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan was accepted by Turkish Cypriots but rejected by the Greek Cypriots in dual referendums held on both sides of the island.

Talks have focused on a federal model based on the political equality of the Turkish and Greek Cypriot sides, but Greek Cypriots’ rejection of such a solution, including the Annan plan, led to the emergence of other models.

In a recent report, current UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres also said "new ideas" may be needed for a settlement on the island.

* Writing by Erdogan Cagatay Zontur