On Saturday, Turkey strongly condemned comments by the leader of breakaway northern Cyprus, Mustafa Akinci, who said the prospect of annexation by Ankara was “horrible”.
Akinci is president of the self-declared Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, only recognised by Ankara.
In an interview with Britain’s Guardian newspaper on Thursday, Akinci said reunification remained the only viable solution to Cyprus.
He warned that if this failed to happen, the north would grow increasingly dependent on Ankara and could end up as a de facto Turkish province. He called this prospect “horrible”.
“We condemn the comments in the firmest terms,” Fahrettin Altun, communications director at the Turkish presidency, said in a statement.
Altun said the Turkish Cypriot leader did not merit his current office.
“The Turkish people will teach Mustafa Akinci his place,” he said, referring to elections in April.
