Ankara, November 15, 2025 – The Europe Today: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday commemorated the 42nd anniversary of the founding of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), reiterating Türkiye’s unwavering commitment to the Turkish Cypriot cause.
In a message shared on the Turkish social media platform NSosyal, President Erdogan said: “I commemorate our heroic martyrs with mercy and express my gratitude to our veterans. We will never abandon our national cause, Cyprus,” as he congratulated Turkish Cypriots on the historic occasion.
He added that Ankara would continue to strengthen solidarity with the Turkish Cypriot people “in every way,” underscoring Türkiye’s enduring political and moral support for the TRNC.
Meanwhile, TRNC President Tufan Erhurman, marking the republic’s Nov. 15 Republic Day, emphasized that the Turkish Cypriot community’s decades-long struggle to safeguard its existence, identity, and rights has remained steadfast. He affirmed the TRNC’s determination to continue pursuing a viable solution that ensures lasting peace and stability on the island and contributes to regional security.
A decades-long Cyprus dispute
The island of Cyprus has been embroiled in a protracted conflict between Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots, despite multiple UN-led diplomatic initiatives aimed at reaching a comprehensive settlement.
Ethnic tensions and attacks in the early 1960s forced Turkish Cypriots into enclaves for their protection. In 1974, a Greek Cypriot coup backed by Greece seeking to annex the island prompted Türkiye—acting in its role as a guarantor power—to intervene militarily to protect the Turkish Cypriot population. The TRNC was later proclaimed in 1983.
The conflict has since seen intermittent negotiation efforts, including the unsuccessful 2017 talks in Switzerland involving guarantor states Türkiye, Greece and the United Kingdom.
In 2004, the Greek Cypriot Administration joined the European Union, despite the fact that Greek Cypriots had voted to reject a UN-backed reunification plan in the same year—a plan supported overwhelmingly by Turkish Cypriots.
Erdogan’s message and the statements from TRNC leadership underscore a continued push for recognition, stability, and a just resolution based on the political realities on the island.
