UK backs efforts to reduce Turkish Cypriot isolation

 

The commitment came in a written parliamentary answer to former Conservative leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith, who asked about the Government’s policy on trade with Turkish Cypriots in North Cyprus.

Responding on behalf of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office on October 16, Uma Kumaran said: “Within these constraints, we support measures to reduce the isolation of the Turkish Cypriot community, including through engagement with the Turkish Cypriot Chamber of Commerce.”

She also said Britain encouraged greater economic cooperation and trade across Cyprus, while maintaining that a just and lasting settlement remained the best way to resolve the challenges caused by the island’s division.

The response reiterated Britain’s non-recognition of the TRNC, citing UN Security Council resolutions, international agreements and court rulings as constraints on links with North Cyprus. However, it confirmed that support for reducing Turkish Cypriot isolation remained part of British policy.

The commitment echoes a longstanding international pledge. Following the April 2004 referendums on the UN settlement plan, the EU Council declared its determination to end Turkish Cypriot isolation by encouraging economic development and closer contact with Europe.

That pledge helped shape the EU’s aid programme for the Turkish Cypriot community, while the Green Line Regulation provides a framework for eligible goods to be traded across the divide.

The latest British answer identified the Chamber of Commerce as a channel for engagement, but announced no new trade arrangements, funding or timetable for further action.