MOSCOW (Sputnik) – Moscow believes that Turkey’s readiness to establish a military base in Northern Cyprus could increase regional conflict risks, and opposes the militarization of the Eastern Mediterranean, Yuri Pilipson, the director of the Russian Foreign Ministry’s Fourth European Department, told Sputnik.
Moscow proceeds from the «necessity of a comprehensive, viable and fair solution to the Cyprus problem within the agreed international legal frameworks established by UN Security Council resolutions, with the mandatory consideration of the legitimate interests and concerns of both communities,» Pilipson said.
Cyprus has been de facto divided into Greek and Turkish territories since 1974. The Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus was declared in 1983 with Ankara’s backing. Negotiations on Cypriot reunification have been underway almost from the moment of its partition. The latest round of talks, in the Swiss town of Crans-Montana, collapsed in July 2017.
