Özersay: No New Steps on Cyprus Before Turkey–Israel Rivalry Is Settled

Speaking on the “Gündem” programme on Kıbrıs Postası TV, hosted by Ulaş Barış, Özersay also criticised Western countries’ recent recognition of Palestine, calling it an attempt to “wash their hands” after years of complicity.

Describing Western recognition of Palestine as “belated acts of repentance,” Özersay said these decisions came only after tens of thousands of civilians – including women and children – had been killed and after UN reports explicitly referred to acts of genocide. He argued that Western states were responsible for encouraging Israel’s actions by initially framing them as legitimate self-defence.

While acknowledging that Hamas was wrong to kill civilians, Özersay stressed that Israel’s response must be proportionate. “You cannot say, ‘They fired one rocket at me, so I will occupy their land, kill civilians, commit genocide.’ This is unjust,” he said.

Özersay accused Western powers, particularly the UK and France, of enabling Israel’s aggression and only changing their stance to “clean their hands” once public opinion turned against them. He added that a shift in the international system could eventually lead to a ruling by the International Court of Justice recognising genocide, which would place some of the responsibility on those same states.

Another reason behind the wave of recognitions, Özersay said, was the scale of public pressure in the West: “The reaction from Western citizens, reflected in their parliaments, has been a hundred times stronger than in Muslim countries.” He questioned whether these governments would go beyond recognition and provide real support, pointing out that they continued to give intelligence support to Israel from bases in Cyprus and that there would be no air or ground support for Palestine comparable to that given to Ukraine.

On Palestine’s status, Özersay said that recognition was complicated by the lack of clarity over borders and governing authority, noting that France refuses to recognise Hamas as a legitimate counterpart. “A state exists and is recognised with its territory, its people, and its institutions – and these have not been left to Palestine. There is hardly a state left to recognise,” he said, calling this the clearest sign that international norms and systems were collapsing.

Turning to Cyprus, Özersay said President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan was expected to mention the issue during his address to the UN General Assembly in New York, but argued that the meeting most likely to directly affect Cyprus would be in Washington, where Erdoğan is set to hold talks with Middle Eastern leaders.

Özersay predicted that Turkey would not consider its next move on Cyprus until its “power-based rivalry” with Israel was stabilised. He said Turkey–Greece relations had now settled into a more stable axis, which in turn was causing frictions between Greece and the Greek Cypriot administration.

He concluded that the key question for the future of the region was whether Turkey and Israel would become the two main actors implementing Washington’s “Greater Middle East Project,” or whether Turkey would seek a more balanced approach that prioritises its own economic and security interests, including safeguarding its territorial integrity and addressing the Kurdish issue.