Continuing a stalemate over hopes of reunifying the island, Turkish-Cypriot hardline leader Ersin Tatar – who demanded the world recognize his occupied side of the island – said Turkey will always be a guarantor of security there.

That came in response to what he said was Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades, whose legitimate government is a member of the European Union, digging in his heels about Tatar’s demand for two separate states.

Turkish-Cypriots have occupied the northern third of the island since two unlawful Turkish invasions in 1974 that had the implicit backing of the United States at the time.

While United Nations peacekeeping forces are on the island keeping the two sides apart, Turkey, Greece and the former Colonial ruler the United Kingdom are also guarantors of security.
Tatar said that won’t change although it’s been a obstacle to reunification hopes, the last round of talks collapsing in July, 2017 at the Swiss resort of Crans-Montana when then Turkish-Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan saying a 35,000-strong Turkish army on the occupied side would never leave and as they demanded the right to invade further when they wanted.

“The Greek side has been requesting to remove Turkey’s status as a guarantor nation and remove Turkish troops from Cyprus. This is an impossible dream,” Tatar said, reported Turkey’s pro-government newspaper The Daily Sabah, a propaganda mouthpiece for Erdogan.

Tatar said that Anastasiades’ claim that Turkey never wanted guarantors to be removed from Cyprus attempted to hide the Greek-Cypriots irreconcilable stance and that they wanted to keep on blaming Turkey and Turkish-Cypriots.