Turkey will protect its rights in Cyprus - Erdogan

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has reiterated that Turkey is determined to protect its rights in Cyprus and the Eastern Mediterranean.

Erdogan made the remarks during his New Year message on Monday.

According to media reports in the TRNC, Erdogan said that Turkey has demonstrated its determination to protect its rights in Cyprus, the Eastern Mediterranean and the Aegean both in the political sphere and in the field.

As regards the wider situation in the region, Erdogan said that the developments are the source of many problems including separatist terrorism.

Turkey, he said, has no aspirations on the sovereignty of anyone.

Our only aim is to bring our nation and our brothers who live in our region to safety, peace and a safe future, he said.

He said that Turkey was “not responsible for the incidents in the region and will not be a victim of them”.