Ünal Üstel hosts Turkish vice-president for two-day visit covering major infrastructure and defence commitments
The ‘prime minister’ of the self-styled Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), Ünal Üstel, said the north was closely tracking rearmament activity in the Republic of Cyprus, along with military agreements between Cyprus and foreign countries and shifting security dynamics in the region.
Üstel made the remarks at a joint press conference in Nicosia alongside Turkish Vice-President Cevdet Yılmaz, who is on a two-day visit to the north.
Describing the relationship between Turkey and the TRNC as founded on unshakeable kinship, strong trust, mutual affection and deep respect, Üstel said the two sides were continuing to build on that bond with new areas of cooperation, TRT reported.
He said projects designed to directly improve the lives of Turkish Cypriots were being developed in line with the country’s needs and brought to life with the support of Turkey, describing that mutual trust as the clearest expression of the major projects and historic investments under way between the two sides.
Üstel credited President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s leadership and Yılmaz’s close engagement with helping the north take significant steps forward in its development, saying the two sides had jointly delivered projects that were reshaping the country’s future across multiple sectors.
He said the two-day visit would involve a review of ongoing projects, the handover of completed investments to the public, and the first steps on new projects planned for the next five years.
Search operation and addiction summit
Üstel said the talks would also address the continuing search operation following the sinking of a passenger vessel off Kyrenia on 30 August, thanking Turkey for mobilising its resources and playing a major role in the search effort in support of Turkish Cypriots.
He added that he would attend a symposium later the same day on tackling substance addiction, describing drug dependency as a major threat targeting children and young people in particular, and said the north viewed the fight against addiction as both a serious security issue and a matter of protecting families and the country’s future.
Investment programme
Outlining the visit’s agenda, Üstel said the two sides would unveil the largest sports infrastructure investment in the TRNC in 40 years, the new Atatürk Stadium and Sports Complex, and would inaugurate the CYPFRUVEX integrated cold storage facility on Thursday, which he said was significant for the north’s agricultural sector and would help reduce produce losses and strengthen farmers’ competitiveness.
He said the talks with Yılmaz would also review progress on hospitals, schools, roads, energy, fibre-optic infrastructure, digital transformation and social housing, with the aim of completing all ongoing projects on schedule.
Eastern Mediterranean developments
Turning to regional security, Üstel said the two sides would also discuss military and strategic developments in the Eastern Mediterranean, repeating that the north was closely following rearmament activity in the south, its military agreements with foreign states, and the changing balance of security in the region.
He said the security of the Turkish Cypriot community came before all else, and that the north could not ignore or allow negligence on any development in this area. He described Turkey’s “effective and actual guarantee” as the indispensable guarantee of Turkish Cypriot security, saying the north would continue to defend its national cause, sovereign equality and state rights in full solidarity with Turkey.
Üstel said the coming five years would mark a major period of development and transformation for the TRNC, with further landmark projects planned alongside Turkey, and thanked Erdoğan and Yılmaz for their support to the Turkish Cypriot community.
