ATHENS – “The statements of the Turkish president regarding the illegal invasion of Cyprus in 1974 constitute a blatant distortion of the historical truth and an insult to the memory of the victims,” according to Greek diplomatic sources on Tuesday.

“Much more so when this is done at a time when there is an ongoing effort under the auspices of the United Nations Organisation to resume the talks for the solution of the Cyprus issue in the context of the decisions of the UN Security Council,” the same sources emphasised.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, in a speech he delivered to Turkish military personnel on Monday, said that if Turkish forces had pushed further south in 1974, then all of Cyprus would be entirely Turkish today.

As he said, the “Turkish Cypriots were on the brink of genocide just half a century ago. In the Peace Operation of 1974, 498 Turkish soldiers from all corners of the country, officers, non-commissioned officers and civilians, were martyred. Despite all the pressures, if it were not for Turkiye’s intervention, neither the ‘Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus’ nor the Turkish Cypriots would exist today.”