Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhürman will make his first official visit to Ankara on Thursday November 13, where he is due to hold talks with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on the next steps for the Cyprus issue.
Ruling coalition leaders fly to Ankara today
Before Erhürman’s trip, three leaders of the parties that form the ruling coalition in the Turkish Cypriot community and advocate a two-state outcome are travelling to Ankara today. They are National Unity Party leader Ünal Üstel, and Democratic Party leader Fikri Ataoğlu, and Erhan Arıklı, who heads the Rebirth Party (settler-linked).
According to Turkish Cypriot media, the three coalition partners will hold political meetings in Ankara. Kıbrıs Postası, citing “high-level sources” in the Turkish Cypriot community, reports that the trio, who backed Ersin Tatar in the recent elections, will discuss with Turkish officials possible political developments following Erhürman’s election and a new roadmap for the Cyprus negotiations. The same sources describe the talks as taking place at a key turning point, with an official statement from the ruling coalition expected after the Ankara contacts.
Üstel reiterates two-state stance, tied to Erdoğan
Last week, Ünal Üstel told the Turkish online channel Medyascope that there is no change to the “two states” policy after the elections. He stressed that President Erdoğan’s support for a two-state solution is of great importance and added that “as long as the President of Turkey defends this policy, we will be on the same line.”
Reading the signal from Ankara
Üstel’s remark effectively places the two-state line under the Turkish president’s discretion, implying that a shift on Cyprus is possible if and when Erdoğan decides so. Attention therefore turns to Ankara, with interest in both the meetings of the three coalition partners and Erhürman’s visit. If President Erdoğan gives Erhürman the green light for a new approach, he is expected to advise the ruling coalition to lower the rhetoric and allow the new Turkish Cypriot leader to handle the Cyprus file on the basis of a federal settlement.