Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar stated that “Turkey is determined to use its rights and fulfill its obligations as a guarantor state in the Cyprus issue” and emphasized that “the Turkish army is ready to carry out its tasks around the clock”, noting that “we have taken measures to prevent the imposition of any fait accompli.

Commenting on the US decision to lift the arms embargo against the Greek Cypriot administration, he stressed in a speech at the National Defense University in Istanbul that “We are determined and determined to protect our rights and interests, and fortunately we can do so.”

Cyprus has suffered from division between Turkey in the north and Rumi in the south since 1974, and in 2004 the Greek Cypriots rejected a United Nations plan to unite the two parts of the island.

Since the failure of UN-sponsored talks to reunify Cyprus in Switzerland in July 2017, no official UN-brokered talks have been held to resolve the dispute on the island.

Regarding Greece’s ongoing arming of disputed islands in the Aegean, Akar said “Turkey has taken and will continue to take the necessary steps in this regard.”

He explained that “his country has never retreated from its steps in the issue of the islands”, and said that “in this context, there are clear orders addressed to the navy and the air force in particular”, without specifying details.