Anyone who dreams of zero Turkish troops in Cyprus needs to wake up because it will never happen, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu was quoted as saying on Tuesday.
According to CNA, Cavusoglu was giving a speech at the Turkish National Assembly during the budget debate.
“I remind those who dream of zero guarantees and zero troops. Let’s wake up from this dream, let it go, such a thing will never happen,” he was reported to have said.
He called for “honest efforts” to reach a Cyprus solution and accused the Greek Cypriots of not meeting Turkey’s “sincere efforts” halfway.
“Now there is no question of starting negotiations just to talk. We will define what, why, in what parameters, in what context will we discuss,” he added.
On oil and gas exploration, he said, Turkey’s position is clear. “We now have a drilling rig. We are not only surveying, we are drilling, and we will continue to take the necessary measures with our ships and troops.”