Northern Cyprus, which Erdogan visited on Monday, is recognized as an independent country only by Turkey, while Azerbaijan, which he will visit on Tuesday, is a traditional ally of Ankara.
The Turkish political analyst, Javad Gok, reviewed for “Sky News Arabia” what stands behind this Turkish tradition towards northern Cyprus and Azerbaijan in particular, saying:
- Usually, every Turkish president begins his term by visiting Northern Cyprus and Azerbaijan, because they are the two countries closest to Turkey in terms of political alliances, and there is a consistent government strategy to always stand with them.
- It is customary to discuss cooperation files with them and to contribute to some ongoing projects with Turkish assistance, especially in Northern Cyprus, which is organically linked to Ankara.
- The visit this time sends messages to Greece, Cyprus and Armenia, that Ankara will not change its approach towards providing full support to Baku and Nicosia.
Gök refers to the dispute that has existed since the 1970s between Turkey on the one hand, and Greece and the part it supports in southern Cyprus on the one hand, over the legitimacy of the northern part of Cyprus supported by Turkey.
He also refers to the dispute between Turkey and Armenia regarding Ankara’s support for Azerbaijan in its dispute with Armenia over the Nagorno-Karabakh region.
A national security issue
The former Egyptian diplomat, Ambassador Bilal Al-Masry, explained to “Sky News Arabia” the reasons for Erdogan’s visit to these two destinations, from his point of view, saying:
– It is natural that Northern Cyprus is the first foreign destination for the Turkish president, given its primacy in the matrix of Turkish national security priorities.
The visit is also a direct message to several countries regarding the importance of Northern Cyprus to Turkey.
– One of the reasons for this importance is that Northern Cyprus and what is known as the Aegean Islands are considered two issues related to the Turkish maritime domain and security, and even land, and therefore the Turkish Cypriots call Turkey the motherland.
The Turkish role in both Northern Cyprus and Azerbaijan
- In 1974, Turkey intervened militarily in Cyprus after a coup in the island and its attempt to annex it to Greece, and Ankara imposed its control over 37 percent of the area of Cyprus.
- In 1983, the establishment of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus was declared, which was recognized only by Ankara, and this became one of the most complex files of the dispute with Greece, and Ankara says that the Turkish Cypriots are “an integral part of the Turkish world.”
- Negotiations are underway on the reunification of Cyprus between the Greek and Turkish components, mediated by the United Nations, but they have stalled since 2017.
- Azerbaijan and Armenia dispute over the border region of Nagorno-Karabakh, which Baku considers part of its lands, while Yerevan supports it under the pretext that it has an Armenian majority.
- Turkey supports Azerbaijan in the conflict, especially because of its strong relations with Baku in the field of gas imports, and there are historical conflicts between Turkey and Armenia dating back to the era of the Ottoman Empire.
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