Cyprus’ Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned the illegal visit of Turkish President Tayip Erdogan to the island’s occupied areas as well as his statements on the recognition of the illegal entity.

MFA described the visit as another flagrant violation of the UN Security Council Resolutions, adding that at a time when the Republic of Cyprus is making strong efforts to resume the peace negotiations to reach a solution within the agreed UN framework, this rhetoric that serves Turkey’s policy of promoting the “recognition” of the illegal entity in the occupied areas comes at the expense of any prospect for resolving the Cyprus problem.

It concludes by saying that in light of these illegal actions, it will take all the appropriate actions and steps.

The illegal entity is only recognized by Turkey which in 1974 invaded Cyprus. Numerous rounds of UN backed talks to reunite the island under a federal roof failed to yield results. The latest talks took place in the summer of 2017 in the Swiss resort of Crans Montana.