Cyprus federal settlement efforts ended at Crans-Montana: TRNC PM

Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) Prime Minister Unal Ustel has said that the Cyprus problem stems from the international community's recognition of the Greek Cypriot administration as the island's sole state and representative, declaring that efforts to reach a federal settlement ended at the 2017 Crans-Montana Conference.

Ustel made the remarks on Wednesday following his meeting with Maria Angela Holguin Cuellar, the UN secretary-general's personal envoy on Cyprus, at the UBP (National Unity Party) headquarters.

Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Ustel said he had conveyed the Turkish Cypriot people's messages clearly to Holguin.

He said that despite the Turkish Cypriot side's longstanding goodwill and constructive approach, the Greek Cypriot administration had shown no willingness to accept a partnership based on political equality and power-sharing.

Ustel said this had once again become evident during the 2017 Crans-Montana Conference.

He added that he had also drawn attention to how the Greek Cypriot administration's international status, which he described as unjustly granted, allowed the continuation of the existing status quo.

Stressing that there are two separate peoples and states on the island, Ustel said UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres' visit to Cyprus on July 27-29, 2026, had once again demonstrated the absence of common ground for launching formal negotiations.

"The search for an agreement on the basis of a federation came to an end at Crans-Montana," Ustel said.

"Reintroducing a model whose failure has been repeatedly demonstrated under different names or methods will not contribute to a solution to the Cyprus issue."

He argued that a sustainable and mutually acceptable settlement could only be achieved through the reaffirmation of the Turkish Cypriot people's inherent rights to sovereign equality and equal international status.

Two-state reality

The TRNC prime minister underlined that a realistic, sustainable, and lasting settlement in Cyprus could only be achieved through recognition of the sovereign equality of the island's two peoples and two states.

He called on the international community, particularly the United Nations, to acknowledge the political realities on the island.

Ustel's remarks reaffirm the Turkish Cypriot leadership's position that future negotiations should be based on sovereign equality and equal international status, rather than the traditional federal framework.

TRT World / AA — TRT World / AA

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