Leading figures from the ruling right-wing political parties in Turkiye and Azerbaijan have signed a co-operation agreement with their Turkish Cypriot peers.
The agreement, signed in Lefkoşa / North Nicosia on Tuesday, 14 November, aims to further political relations between the Turkish countries under the motto of “3 states, one nation.”
Prime Minister Ünal Üstel of the Turkish Republic of North Cyprus (TRNC), who heads the National Unity Party (UBP), was joined by Justice and Development Party (AKP) Deputy Chairman Efkan Ala and Tahir Budagov, the Deputy Chairman of the New Azerbaijan Party (YAP), for the signing ceremony at the Concorde Hotel in the TRNC capital.
The international guests were part of larger delegations from their nations, who were visiting North Cyprus to celebrate the 40thanniversary of the country’s declaration of independence.
Speaking at the signing ceremony, Prime Minister Üstel underlined the importance of the historic agreement reached between the three political parties:
“Today, in line with the ‘3 states, one nation’ slogan, the parties signed a historic and international and institutional agreement to further strengthen the bridges of affection and carry the cooperation between their countries to even higher levels. Through these signatures, our ‘3 states, one nation’ phrase has now gained an international legal dimension.”
AKP’s Ala started by congratulating Turkish Cypriots on the 40th anniversary of the founding of their state, before expressing his delight at the three-way cooperation pact between the ruling parties of Turkiye, Azerbaijan and the TRNC.
Ala said that ‘the world needs more cooperation’ and hoped that the agreement would serve as an example for other political parties in countries across the region.
In his speech, YAP’s Budagov recalled how the TRNC, backed by Azerbaijan and Turkiye, was admitted as an Observer Member to the Organization of Turkic States (OTS), and was adamant that, despite all the obstacles in its way, the Turkish Cypriot state would continue to develop and expand its relations with the Turkic world through the OTS.
Budagov added that YAP and Azerbaijan will continue to support the drive for the TRNC to receive more recognition from the international community.
Also present at the signing ceremony was TRNC Speaker of Parliament Zorlu Töre (UBP), and the head’s UBP’s government coalition partners, TRNC Deputy Prime Minister Fikri Ataoğlu (DP) and TRNC Minister of Public Works and Transport Erhan Arıklı. They were joined by other TRNC ministers, MPs and Turkish Cypriot officials, as well as representatives from AKP and YAP.
