Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz made important statements on Cyprus. Yılmaz stated that Cyprus will never be a Greek Cypriot island.
Yılmaz stressed that no initiative excluding Turkey and disregarding the rights of Turkish Cypriots and Turkey's legitimate interests in the Eastern Mediterranean can succeed. "As the motherland and guarantor, Turkey will continue to stand by the TRNC so that Turkish Cypriots can live freely, honorably, and securely," he said.
Yılmaz also called on the international community, saying, "It must now accept that Turkish Cypriots are as much the owners of these lands as Greek Cypriots."