Tatar heads to Azerbaijan for OTS summit

Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar left Cyprus for Azerbaijan on Thursday to attend a leaders’ summit of the Organisation of Turkic States (OTS).

Tatar was personally invited to the summit by Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev, who said in February that “the president of the TRNC will attend the summit to be held in Shusha upon my invitation. This will accelerate the unity of the Turkic people.”

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is also expected to attend the summit, which will take place in the town of Shusha, in the Karabakh region, which was recaptured by Azerbaijan from Armenian forces last year.

Speaking before his departure from Ercan (Tymbou) airport, Tatar thanked Aliyev “for the great support he has given to the TRNC to date and for inviting us to the Shusha summit”.

He said that advancing the north’s status as an observer member of the OTS is his “primary goal” and reiterated his call for two separate states with sovereign equality as a solution to the Cyprus problem.

Additionally, he said the north is a “natural member of the Turkic union”.

“We are stronger together. We are going to meet with the family,” he said.

Tatar’s attendance at the summit will mark the latest episode in Azerbaijan’s flirtation with recognition of the north.

Aliyev had last month said his country is making “diplomatic efforts” for the north to become an observer member of the OTS, with the north’s observer status having been agreed upon by the OTS’ leaders’ summit in 2022, but with parliamentary ratification from the five member states still pending.

He had added at the time that he supports the north becoming a full member of the OTS.

“This is very natural, because historically, the TRNC is a part of the Turkic world. The Turks living there are our brothers,” he said.

The moves have earned the ire of Cyprus’ House President Annita Demetriou, who promised in April that she would “send a message” to Azerbaijan over its relations with the north.

Specifically, she was referring to the country’s decision to create an ‘inter-parliamentary’ group with the north’s ‘parliament’, adding that she would pen a letter to her Azerbaijani counterpart Sahiba Gafarova to condemn the move.

“Unfortunately, this is not the first time Azerbaijan has made such an effort. We must once again do everything in our power to stop it. It is unacceptable and reprehensible,” she said.