Ertuğruloğlu: ‘Stewart’s statements are a serious disrespect to the Turkish Cypriot side’

TRNC Foreign Minister Tahsin Ertuğruloğlu said that the United Nations Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Cyprus, Colin Stewart, whose term has ended, was a great disappointment.

Speaking on the BRT programme ‘Gündem+’, Ertuğruloğlu recalled that Special Representative Stewart’s stance, particularly on the Yiğitler-Pile road, had brought the issue to a point of conflict.

Ertuğruloğlu stated, “Given his behavior so far, I wasn’t surprised by the statements he made to both the Greek Cypriot press and some of our media outlets upon his departure.”

He said that Stewart’s statements did not reflect the realities on the island and added, “When you point this out to him, he responds arrogantly and evades the essence of the matter and has clearly demonstrated his pro-Greek Cypriot stance as a UN official.’

Ertuğruloğlu further noted that even UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has not used such language and said: “This is a great disrespect toward the Turkish Cypriot side.”

He criticized Stewart for making statements that contradicted the impartiality expected of his position, adding, “This only reinforces our justified concerns about the nationality of individuals appointed to such roles.”

Minister Ertuğruloğlu concluded by underlining that the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council played a central role in creating the Cyprus problem and said that as long as the Greek Cypriot side was seen as the Republic of Cyprus, any talk of a resolution remains unrealistic.