Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s call Sunday for a two-state solution for the divided island of Cyprus and vow for Turkey to continue drilling for hydrocarbons in the Eastern Mediterranean has sparked fresh controversy and poured cold water over excited chatter of a “reset” in Ankara’s relations with the West.
Speaking on the 37th anniversary of the declaration of independence of the breakaway Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, recognized solely by Turkey, Erdogan insisted that a two-state solution for the Mediterranean island needed to be negotiated “on the basis of sovereign equality” because there are “two separate peoples and states” on the island. Erdogan, who traveled to Northern Cyprus with his informal coalition partner, far-right leader Devlet Bahceli, added that Turkey would continue drilling in contested waters around Cyprus and the Greek islands “until a fair settlement” was reached.
