NICOSIA, Cyprus – Turkey’s foreign minister says Turkish soldiers will remain on Cyprus under any agreement to reunify the ethnically divided island.
Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu says Turkey won’t accept a peace accord that would mandate the withdrawal of all of its troops from Cyprus — a key demand by Greece and internationally recognized Greek Cypriots.
He told reporters after a morning round of talks at a Swiss resort Tuesday that anyone “dreaming” of removing all Turkish troops from the island has “to wake up.”
Çavuşoğlu says abolishing military intervention rights in an envisioned federal Cyprus is a “non-starter” for Turkey and the nation’s breakaway Turkish Cypriots.
Cyprus has kept more than 35,000 troops on Cyprus since 1974, when it invaded in the wake of a coup mounted by supporters of union with Greece.