President Akinci’s spokesman Baris Burcu has slammed President Erdogan’s advisor Yigit Bulut for describing the TRNC as “an overseas province of Turkey.”
“The definition of ‘overseas province’ is an invalid concept that no longer has a place in modern Turkey’s Misak-i Milli [National Oath] understanding, sinking deep into Ottoman history,” Burcu said on Wednesday .
Bulut had made the remarks during a TV programme on Turkey’s state-owned television channel TRT News.
“[Turkish Cyprus] is an overseas province of Turkey … There is a president, a prime minister and parliament there, and Turkey is basically paying for these expenses,” he said.
In response, Burcu said the two capitals’ relations should not be founded on the framework of Turkish Cyprus being an “overseas province,” but instead as “allied and brotherly countries.”
Although Bulut’s remarks were “inappropriate,” they should not be “taken seriously,” Burcu added, noting that Erdogan’s colorful advisor had also made statements in the past that “caused public resentment.”
“Saying ‘[Turkish Cyprus] is an overseas province of the Turkish Republic’ is unacceptable and has wounded the Turkish Cypriot people,” he also said.
Hurriyet