Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar met Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev on the sidelines of the Antalya diplomatic forum in Turkey on Friday.

Tatar thanked Aliyev for his “solidarity and support” and for the statements Aliyev had made in support of international recognition for the north on Wednesday, while “mutual visits at various levels and cooperation in different fields” were also discussed.

The official website of Azerbaijan’s presidency referred to Tatar as the “President of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus” in its announcement of the meeting.

At a diplomatic forum in his country’s capital Baku on Wednesday, Aliyev had promised to ensure that the north will gain international recognition.

“We are only thinking about how we can help our brothers protect their state,” he added. “They deserve this in terms of history and what they have done.”

Then speaking on Cyprus’ history, he pointed out that at the 2004 Annan Plan referendum, which would have reunited Cyprus if passed, the majority of Turkish Cypriots voted in favour but the majority of Greek Cypriots voted against.

“Look, what happened? The Greek Cypriot side was accepted into the European Union. Is this fair? So, was this a clear example of double standards and politicians do not want to talk about it. So, they do not want to cause them any headaches and if they talk about this, they may get other headaches,” he said.

“That is why I want to tell our brothers in North Cyprus that we will always be with you and we will ensure that your country is established as an independent state and is recognised by the international community.”

Wednesday’s comments and Friday’s meeting with Tatar seem to signal a return, on Azerbaijan’s part, to a policy on Cyprus which is more aligned with that of Turkey, after the country’s relations with the Republic of Cyprus had appeared to thaw in recent months.

The country’s Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov had in December met his Cypriot counterpart Constantinos Kombos, stressing after the meeting the “importance of continuing the dialogue” between the Republic of Cyprus and Azerbaijan.

That meeting was the second of its kind in the space of a month, with the pair having also met on the sidelines of November’s Cop29 summit in Baku.

President Nikos Christodoulides had said that meeting was “a meeting which, beyond symbolism, is of particular essential importance.”

The two meetings, as well as Christodoulides’ reception in Baku in November as the president of Cyprus, were seen to mark a shift in Azerbaijan’s stance on Cyprus, though Wednesday’s comments suggest a return to closer alignment with Ankara on the matter, as had been the case before.