The Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) had been successfully fighting the Covid-19, and there have been no incidents in the country for 25 days Prime MInister Ersin Tatar said.
He noted that both the government and the public are more prepared for the virus should there be a second outbreak.
Speaking to BRTK, Tatar referred to the pandemic and development of the economy.
“I think we can handle it when a second wave arrives,” said Tatar, “we are at a much safer point now“.the prime minister said, adding the following:
“ We have done many things during this process. There are 170 beds allocated to the disease in our state hospital. In addition, there will be 160 available at Girne American hospital. The project is ready. It may also become a pandemic hospital.”
The Economy
Prime Minister Tatar also said that the government continued its work to stimulate the economy with the government’s measures taken so far, his contacts with the Republic of Turkey. The Central Bank has stated that the economy could be revived with an influx of 500 million TL. Tatar said, “We have to stick to the budget. We have to find resources. We do not know how the process will go now, but I believe that after June there will be a recovery, a number of road maps have become clear. We will manage this process by internal borrowing”.
New Financial Protocol
The prime minister also indicated that the operation of the economic and financial protocol with Turkey for 2020 continued. Tatar said that Turkey had granted 700 million TL for 2020. These monies would be allocated to public finance, infrastructure, the real sector and defence. He said that It was not possible to give a date for the protocol yet, studies were ongoing. Tatar also said the 1,500 TL allowance for workers on furlough would continue for the time being.
Cyprus Issue
“When you look at the glorious pages of history, the discourse is the same,” Tatar said,
“Doctor Fazıl Küçük, Rauf Denktaş, Eroğlu said it, and I am saying it. Our state has been taking root for years. When we look at the last 25-30 years, it turns out how accurate our rhetoric was”.
The prime minister also criticised the European Union (EU), and reminded that the promises that they made had not been fulfilled. Tatar went on to say the following:
“We now understand better that there are two separate states in Cyprus and that the process should be managed in this way. Now there is the Blue homeland. [Turkey’s expanded claims to land and marine territory in the Aegean Sea. Ed.] We understand better how important is the dialogue with Turkey when we consider what happened about natural gas. If you ask me, the Cyprus issue is no longer on the agenda. Neither we nor the world have time. Our duty is to strengthen the TRNC. Of course, we will be in close contact with Turkey. As with other countries, we will be in contact with Turkey. Turkey is the only country to recognise us. strengthening good contact with the Republic of Turkey and the TRNC’s development, we need to continue our future plans. This could be a centre of attraction.”
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