Toros: Federation Is the Only Solution Model Required by Our Collective Will

Toros delivered the opening speech during the Republic Assembly’s General Debate on the Presidency’s budget.

He stressed the importance of strengthening the capacity of the Presidency, an institution at the apex of the state, in order to better guide society. Toros also underlined the need to support the Committee on Missing Persons and to urgently address financial arrangements related to the Presidential Symphony Orchestra.

Turning to the Cyprus issue, Toros said a settlement based on a federation grounded in the political equality of the two communities can no longer be delayed. A federation, he said, is not merely a political model. “A federation is the only solution model required by our will for lasting peace, genuine democracy, and a future in which all our confiscated rights are restored in our common homeland,” he noted.

Toros recalled that the patience and resolve of the Turkish Cypriot community had been tested throughout negotiation processes extending from the Annan Plan referendum to Crans-Montana. “We sat at the negotiating table without hesitation, with goodwill and determination. We were constructive. We wanted a solution,” he said.

Referring to the Presidential election held on 19 October, Toros argued that the result represented far more than a political victory. “This election is the expression of the Turkish Cypriot people’s collective will to overcome fear and pressure, and to move toward lasting peace, genuine democracy, and integration with the world through a comprehensive settlement in our shared homeland,” he said.

He added that the Turkish Cypriot community had once again boldly affirmed its desire for unity and solidarity over isolation and loneliness, and for peace over conflict. “This strong will is a will for change,” Toros said. “It is the strongest possible reaction against corruption, impoverishment, and decay.”