Turkish Cypriot ‘foreign minister’ Tahsin Ertugruloglu on Friday said that Cyprus “has long been part of the ‘promised land’ concept” for Israel, and that “this is why relations between Israel and the Greek Cypriot administration have become increasingly close”.

“Israel, together with southern Cyprus, shares the approach of ‘liberating Cyprus from Turkey’,” he said during a speech at the Antalya diplomacy forum, before adding that “recent military activity in southern Cyprus should be interpreted within this context”.

In this, he was referring to the fact that after Cyprus was hit by an Iranian-made drone last month, Greece, France, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom all deployed naval or aerial assets to the island and its vicinity.

He said of these deployments that “southern Cyprus has pretty much turned itself into a military headquarters”, while also highlighting recent joint training exercises carried out by the National Guard and the United States’ military, as well as agreements in the defence sector signed by the Republic of Cyprus and the State of Israel.

Despite this, he said, “the military balance on the island has not been disrupted”, as “Turkey has taken the necessary precautions and the deterrent effect created by the Turkish armed forces since 1974 is continuing to hold”.

Turkey deployed six F-16 fighter jets and Hisar-A surface-to-air missiles to the island in the aftermath of last month’s drone strike.

Ertugruloglu had held a meeting with Pakistani Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar

In light of this and the continued presence of large numbers of Turkish troops on the island, Ertugruloglu said on Friday that “any military action by southern Cyprus against the TRNC would be suicidal”, and that “the Greek Cypriot side has no chance of acting alone”.

He then added that “the eastern Mediterranean has become an area of interest for the world’s major powers due to its energy, water resources, and strategic location”, and said that in view of this, “the Turkish Cypriot side, together with Turkey, is waging a fight for its rights and security in the region”.

Nonetheless, he said, “the TRNC has not become a direct military target thanks to the policies pursued by Turkey”.

He said that this comes in contrast to the rest of the island, arguing that “southern Cyprus is at risk due to the British bases and their use by the United States and the United Kingdom”.

“Southern Cyprus has become a part of regional conflicts, and therefore, it could be seen as a military target in the event of a political crisis,” he said.

He then moved on to the prospect of the Republic of Cyprus joining Nato, with some, including former European Commission vice president and current Greek Rural Development Minister Margaritis Schinas, openly campaigning with the aim of such an eventuality.

Ertugruloglu, however, rejected the prospect.

“It is unthinkable that our motherland, the Republic of Turkey, would approve of such a mistake. They can dream on,” he said.