Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar and some of his high-profile supporters hailed Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s speech at the United Nations general assembly, with Tatar describing it as “historic”.

“He emphasised, in the presence of the world’s states, that the solution to the Cyprus issue cannot be built on the ‘federal model’, which has been tried many times before but failed due to the intransigent attitude of the Greek Cypriot side,” he said.

As such, he said, “we cannot thank [Erdogan] enough for his unwavering support”.

“The guarantee of our people’s secure future is our motherland, Turkey, and the Turkish Cypriot people are fully aware of this invaluable asset,” he said.

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He then turned his attention to his election rival Tufan Erhurman and his party the CTP, who support the idea of a return to negotiations towards a federal solution to the Cyprus problem.

“Given this situation, our people will never give credence to those who claim they will reimpose the tactic of federation. Following this speech … for the CTP candidate, who has repeatedly reiterated that he will continue efforts to resolve the Cyprus issue through consultation with the motherland, Turkey, for the sake of votes, it is time to face the facts,” he said.

He added, “my message to our people on this occasion is this: never give credence to those who try to deceive you and manipulate you through emotional manipulation”.

The north’s ‘prime minister’, Unal Ustel, meanwhile, said, “our president has once again reminded the international community of the reality of two equal, sovereign states and two separate peoples by resolutely expressing the equal rights and status of the Turkish Cypriot people on the island”.

“We, the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, express our gratitude to our motherland, Turkey, and to our president, who has always stood by us. This historic stance is the guarantee of our sovereignty and equality,” he said.

‘Foreign minister’ Tahsin Ertugruloglu described Erdogan’s speech as “a resolute defence of the TRNC’s sovereign equality and two-state vision”, and a “great source of strength, honour, and morale for the Turkish Cypriot people”.

He added that Erdogan had “signified strong support for the TRNC’s fight for sovereign equality”.

“We are deeply confident and proud to see the strong support of our motherland, the Republic of Turkey, under the leadership of President Erdogan, on every platform. We are proud and grateful,” he said.

In his speech, Erdogan had declared that a solution to the Cyprus problem “cannot be built on the federal model, which has been attempted numerous times before but failed due to the Greek Cypriot side’s uncompromising stance”.

“There are two separate states and two separate peoples on the island of Cyprus. Turkish Cypriots are equal owners of the island and cannot accept being a minority. The international community must end the unjust isolation to which the Turkish Cypriots have been subjected for half a century,” he said.

As such, he said, “I reiterate the call I made at the last three United Nations general assemblies”.

“I invite the international community to recognise the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus and to establish diplomatic, political and economic relations,” he said.