Turkish nationalist leader Devlet Bahceli said the breakaway Turkish Cypriot state should hold a parliamentary vote to join Türkiye, two days after Turkish Cypriots elected a candidate in favour of restarting talks with Greek Cypriots.
Bahceli, a key ally of President Tayyip Erdoğan whose remarks have at times foreshadowed government policy, on Tuesday dismissed calls for a federal solution on the ethnically split island and said "Cyprus is Turkish and the homeland of Turks".
The landslide victory of centre-left politician Tufan Erhurman as the next Turkish Cypriot president has offered hope in breaking an eight-year impasse in peace talks on the divided island of Cyprus, which has an internationally recognised Greek Cypriot government.
He has pledged to restart talks with Greek Cypriots.
Erdoğan congratulated the new leader following Sunday's election, but Bahceli's comments highlight the nationalist bloc's push for closer political and territorial alignment with Ankara.
"The TRNC (Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus) parliament must take a decision to join the Republic of Turkey," Bahceli told his parliamentary group on Tuesday, referring to the breakaway state, which is only recognised by Türkiye .
"The fate of Turkish Cypriots cannot be represented through this level of participation," he said of Sunday's vote.
"There is no validity or future for federation proposals. Cyprus is our national cause and there is absolutely no turning back from this just cause."
Erdoğan and Bahceli, while not of the same political party, have been in a governing alliance since 2018.
Cyprus was split in a Turkish invasion in 1974 after a brief Greek-inspired coup, and relations between ethnic Greek and Turkish Cypriots have been strained since peace talks collapsed in 2017.
Negotiations between the U.S. and Iran mediated by Qatar in Doha have concluded, Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister, Kazem Gharibabadi has said. ...
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Iranian and U.S. negotiating teams were due in Doha this week, but Iran said on Monday no meeting had been scheduled as weekend missile fire from both...
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Negotiations between the U.S. and Iran mediated by Qatar in Doha have concluded, Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister, Kazem Gharibabadi has said.
On 1 July, President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen arrived in Azerbaijan on a working visit.
China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi is visiting Denmark, Sweden, Finland and Norway this week in a landmark tour of the Nordic region that reflects Beijing's efforts to strengthen ties with Europe at a time of growing geopolitical uncertainty.
German prosecutors have arrested a German-Rwandan national on suspicion of aiding genocide and 25 counts of murder during the 1994 Rwandan genocide, authorities said on Wednesday (1 July).
Iranian and U.S. negotiating teams were due in Doha this week, but Iran said on Monday no meeting had been scheduled as weekend missile fire from both sides tested the interim ceasefire to end the four-month-old war.
Negotiations between the U.S. and Iran mediated by Qatar in Doha have concluded, Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister, Kazem Gharibabadi has said.
Mexico ended their 40-year wait for a World Cup knockout win, while Erling Haaland sent Norway through and Kylian Mbappé fired France into the last 16.
The wife and children of Argentine footballer Lucas Trejo were among around 1,700 people who died when two earthquakes struck northern Venezuela last week.
Morocco held their nerve to beat the Netherlands on penalties after a dramatic late equaliser, Gabriel Martinelli spared Brazil's blushes with a stoppage-time winner against Japan, while Paraguay stunned Germany in the tournament's biggest shock to reach the World Cup last 16.
China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi is visiting Denmark, Sweden, Finland and Norway this week in a landmark tour of the Nordic region that reflects Beijing's efforts to strengthen ties with Europe at a time of growing geopolitical uncertainty.
South African police arrested more than 900 people during nationwide anti-migrant protests on Tuesday (30 June), as demonstrations across the country turned violent in some areas, although most remained peaceful.
German prosecutors have arrested a German-Rwandan national on suspicion of aiding genocide and 25 counts of murder during the 1994 Rwandan genocide, authorities said on Wednesday (1 July).
At least five people have died after a fire swept through a 10-storey apartment building in the Belgian city of Antwerp, authorities said on Wednesday.
Eight Kenyan schoolgirls have pleaded not guilty to murder charges over a dormitory fire that killed 16 fellow students and injured dozens more at a boarding school in the country's Rift Valley region.
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