Türkiye's top diplomat visits Northern Cyprus

Türkiye's top diplomat on Sunday visited the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC).

Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, in the port city of Girne, met with representatives of various NGOs.

During the meeting, he was accompanied by Deputy Foreign Minister Sedat Onal and Ali Murat Basceri, the Turkish ambassador to Northern Cyprus.

Following the meeting, Çavuşoğlu on Twitter reiterated that Türkiye will continue to stand with Northern Cyprus.

Cyprus has been mired in a decades-long dispute between Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots, despite a series of diplomatic efforts by the UN to achieve a comprehensive settlement.

Ethnic attacks starting in the early 1960s forced Turkish Cypriots to withdraw into enclaves for their safety.

In 1974, a Greek Cypriot coup aimed at Greece's annexation of the island led to Türkiye's military intervention as a guarantor power to protect Turkish Cypriots from persecution and violence. As a result, the TRNC was founded in 1983.