Turkey's Nationalist Movement Party leader Devlet Bahçeli flatly rejected any federal settlement for Cyprus on Tuesday, ...

Turkey's Nationalist Movement Party leader Devlet Bahçeli flatly rejected any federal settlement for Cyprus on Tuesday, declaring the island "has been Turkish for centuries and will remain Turkish forever." Bahçeli, a governing coalition partner of President Erdogan, called a United Cyprus Federation "an immature fantasy and a disaster for Turkish sovereignty." His remarks came during a parliamentary group meeting in Ankara and were reported by Greek Cypriot outlets Phileleftheros and Proto Thema. The MHP leader described Cyprus as "the strategic centre of the Blue Homeland in Turkey's security doctrine," signaling that Ankara's hardliners view the island as non-negotiable territory rather than a diplomatic question. The Blue Homeland doctrine asserts Turkish maritime jurisdiction across vast stretches of the Eastern Mediterranean, including waters Greece and Cyprus consider their own. Bahçeli also reacted sharply to Greek Cypriot press reports, which he said had not been officially denied, suggesting that fenced-off Varosha could be placed under UN administration and that Famagusta port could be run under European Commission supervision. He said those reports "present an extremely serious picture" for the sovereign rights of Turkish Cypriots. He accused the Republic of Cyprus of serving as "Israel's outpost" in the region, and called on Turkish Cypriots in the north to remain "on alert." The statement adds to a long pattern of maximalist rhetoric from Ankara's nationalist bloc at moments when Cyprus-related diplomacy picks up momentum in Brussels and New York. Turkey has occupied the northern third of Cyprus since its 1974 military invasion, which came 52 years ago. The internationally recognized Republic of Cyprus, an EU member since 2004, controls the south. UN-backed reunification talks have repeatedly stalled, most recently collapsing in 2017 at Crans-Montana. #Cyprus #Turkey #EasternMediterranean