Turkish Cypriot administration leader Unal Ustel on Thursday pushed back sharply against the European Parliament's latest annual report on Turkey, saying he viewed its references to Cyprus with "surprise and regret" and rejecting the document's suggestion that Ankara is exerting undue influence over the Turkish Cypriot community.
Ustel Rejects Claim of Turkish Interference
The European Parliament report had called on Turkey to give the Turkish Cypriot community "the necessary space" to chart its own political course — a passage that Ustel said carried a damaging and unfounded implication.
"This statement contains a clear implication that Turkey is interfering with the will of the Turkish Cypriot people. This approach neither aligns with historical facts, nor is it acceptable," Ustel said.
He went on to assert that Turkish Cypriots exercise their democratic rights freely and without external pressure, describing Ankara's involvement on the island as a natural outgrowth of shared history and cultural bonds rather than political interference.
"The support of the Republic of Turkey is not an intervention, but a natural consequence of historical and cultural ties, as well as its responsibilities as a guarantor power," he said.
Dispute Over Cyprus Problem References
Ustel also took issue with how the report addressed the long-running Cyprus problem, arguing that it failed to recognise what he described as the legitimate position of the Turkish Cypriot side, based on sovereign equality and equal international status.
Notably, Ustel's stance diverges from that of the Turkish Cypriot community's elected leader, Tufan Erhurman, who supports a federal resolution to the Cyprus dispute. Despite this, Ustel characterised the report's positive references to Erhurman's election as showing a disregard for the democratic will of the people.
Buffer Zone and Troop Withdrawal
The report also drew Ustel's criticism for its references to violations of the United Nations buffer zone — violations attributed solely to Turkey. He dismissed the characterisation as "one-sided" and "far from reality".
On the stalled bicommunal construction plans for the buffer zone village of Pyla, Ustel said the responsibility for moving the agreed framework forward did not rest on one party alone.
Regarding the report's call for Turkey to withdraw its military forces from Cyprus, Ustel argued that framing the situation as an occupation ignored the security concerns and historical experiences of Turkish Cypriots, pointing to the intercommunal violence that erupted in 1963 as a foundational context.
"The security of the Turkish Cypriot people is not a matter of debate for us," he said.
EU Accused of Imbalance Over Cyprus
Ustel concluded by accusing the European Union of having historically failed to act as an impartial actor on the Cyprus question. He pointed to the 2004 rejection of the Annan Plan by Greek Cypriot voters, and the subsequent admission of the Republic of Cyprus into the EU without a reunification settlement, as decisions that had fundamentally skewed the conditions for future negotiations.
In his view, the Republic of Cyprus's EU membership removed the incentive for Greek Cypriot administrations to reach a comprehensive settlement and allowed them to adopt maximalist positions at the negotiating table — a dynamic he said had significantly weakened prospects for a lasting solution.
