By Baris Gundogan
ANKARA (AA) – The Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) is all set to host grand celebrations on July 20 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Cyprus Peace Operation, which Türkiye’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will also attend.
In addition to commemorative programs to mark the golden jubilee with grandeur, special events such as concerts by the military band and Mehteran unit band, sports competitions, conferences, seminars, symposiums, and essay competitions will be held to commemorate the occasion.
The military parade will also feature Türkiye’s first aircraft carrier, TCG Anadolu, and several ships.
The Turkish Stars and SOLOTURK teams, two prominent aerobatic demonstration teams of the Turkish Air Force known for their impressive aerial displays and precision flying, are also scheduled to perform as part of the ceremony.
- State officials in TRNC
President Erdogan, Turkish Parliament Speaker Numan Kurtulmus, Cabinet members, political party representatives, and parliamentarians will also attend the celebrations in the TRNC.
Kurtulmus will be accompanied by members of the Presidency Council and Group Deputy Chairmen of the Grand National Assembly.
Opposition CHP Chairman Ozgur Ozel will attend the celebrations alongside 174 Cyprus veterans, members of the party Central Executive Committee, and numerous parliamentarians.
At Ozel's invitation, Ayse Gunes Ayata, the daughter of then-Foreign Minister Turan Gunes, who inspired the "Ayse should go on vacation" code phrase during the Cyprus Peace Operation, and the then-Minister of Labor Onder Sav will also attend the golden jubilee events.
Along with Erdogan, the heads of various Turkish parties, including MHP Chairman Devlet Bahceli, DSP Chairman Onder Aksakal, and BBP Chairman Mustafa Destici, will travel to the TRNC.
- Cyprus issue
The island of Cyprus has been mired in a decades-long dispute between Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots, despite a series of diplomatic efforts 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.
The Greek Cypriot administration was admitted to the EU in 2004, the same year Greek Cypriots thwarted a UN plan to end the longstanding dispute.
*Writing by Gizem Nisa Cebi from Istanbul