Turkish Vice President Cevdet Yilmaz arrived in Cyprus on Wednesday to launch a new “five-year development plan” for the north’s infrastructure.
He was greeted by the north’s ‘prime minister’ Unal Ustel at Ercan (Tymbou) airport on Wednesday morning, and at a press conference at the airport stressed the importance of the development plan.
“Development plans are really very important and valuable. I congratulate everyone who contributed. We will discuss the details at the launch, God willing. We are determined to provide support in every field and develop our cooperation for the plan’s implementation,” he said.
He also touched on the matter of the Cyprus problem, saying he will “continue our work with determination to ensure the Turkish Cypriot people’s future and increase their level of welfare.
“The freedom, law, welfare, independence and development of the Turkish Cypriots are our national cause. We will continue to defend our national cause. We will always continue to stand by the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus and the Turkish Cypriots.”
Ustel also spoke at the press conference and said, “the unwavering relations and cooperation between Turkey and the TRNC are well known”.
“Today, we are together to take these mutual cooperations and relations to even higher levels. We will soon attend a very special meeting in Nicosia with our vice president. We will attend the presentation of the TRNC’s fourth five-year development plan, the likes of which has not been seen for a quarter of a century.”
He pointed out that since he became ‘prime minister’ in 2022, “we have always said there are many projects and reforms which have not been implemented due to instabilities in this country” and thus said the new development plan is an “extremely important step”.
“If we, the TRNC, want to be a state which stands on its own two feet, embraces the world and competes with the world, we must accelerate our development and, most importantly, we must do this in a planned manner,” he said.
He added that among Yilmaz’s planned engagements during the day are meetings with mukhtars, while discussions are also set to be held regarding ongoing infrastructure projects, including ring road projects in northern Nicosia and Kyrenia and the road linking Rizokarpaso to the Apostolos Andreas monastery.
He also referred to under-construction hospitals, including in Morphou and said there are other “ongoing school projects and ongoing health projects”, as well as “projects aimed at meeting the TRNC’s energy demands”.
Additionally, he spoke of the new ‘presidential’ palace and ‘parliament’ building, which he said will be completed “in a matter of days” and will “become a symbol of the TRNC and will exist for centuries to come”.