Liberal Democrat peer John Sharkey called for greater attention to be called upon to the Turkish Cypriot side and condemned the Greek Cypriot community for the historic impasse in negotiations.

Speaking in the House of Lords during the King’s Address, Lord Sharkey addressed the history of negotiations over the Cyprus issue, stating that repeated efforts over more than five decades have not resulted in a settlement.

He said that “numerous attempts at reunification have been made during this period, all of which have failed,” and that “in each case the Greek Cypriot south was the proximate cause of these failures”

He referred to the Crans-Montana negotiations in 2017, describing their collapse as a “great regret” after the “Greek Cypriots abandoned the talks”.

Sharkey also addressed the position of Turkish Cypriots, stating that they “have lived for decades without recognition, under disadvantaged conditions, and deprived of access to international capital due to embargoes”.

During his remarks, Lord Sharkey cited statements attributed to Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhurman, verbatim quoting him as having previously said “is there anyone who truly believes that a solution can be reached on this island by ignoring the existence of the Turkish Cypriot people?”

He invited the British government to engage further with the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Turkish Cypriots.

Lord Sharkey has himself served as chair and vice-chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Turkish Cypriots, which has lobbied extensively for the north’s recognition and for the British government to lift economic embargoes.