The list of ambassadors of Turkey to Northern Cyprus provides a chronological record of individuals who have served as the diplomatic representatives of the Republic of Turkey to the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.
The diplomatic relationship between Turkey and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) has been significant since the establishment of the TRNC in 1983. As a result, Turkey has maintained a consistent presence in TRNC through its embassy and appointed various ambassadors to represent its interests in the region. [1]
Ambassador | Term Start | Term End | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|
İnal Batu | 15 November 1983 | 1 January 1984 | [2] |
Bedrettin Tunabaş | 1 January 1984 | 1 January 1987 | [2] |
Ertuğrul Kumcuoğlu | 1 January 1987 | 19 August 1991 | [2] |
Cahit Bayar | 1 September 1991 | 31 May 1995 | [2] |
Aydan Karahan | 16 June 1995 | 1 October 1996 | [2] |
Ertuğrul Apakan | 1 October 1996 | 29 November 2000 | [2] |
Hayati Güven | 1 December 2000 | 1 December 2004 | [2] |
Aydan Karahan | 3 December 2004 | 30 November 2006 | [3] |
Türkekul Kurttekin | 15 December 2006 | 29 December 2008 | [4] |
Şakir Fakılı | 9 February 2009 | 22 July 2010 | [5] |
Kaya Türkmen | 1 August 2010 | 17 March 2011 | [6] |
Halil İbrahim Akça | 1 April 2011 | 24 July 2015 | [7] |
Derya Kanbay | 28 July 2015 | 30 October 2018 | [8] |
Ali Murat Başçeri | 1 November 2018 | 23 November 2022 | [9] |
Metin Feyzioğlu | 28 November 2022 | Incumbent | [10] |
Cyprus is a member of the United Nations along with most of its agencies as well as the Commonwealth of Nations, World Bank, International Monetary Fund and Council of Europe. In addition, the country has signed the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) and the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency Agreement (MIGA). Cyprus has been a member of the European Union since 2004 and in the second half of 2012 it held the Presidency of the Council of the European Union.
Nicosia, also known as Lefkosia and Lefkoşa, is the capital and largest city of Cyprus. It is the southeasternmost of all EU member states' capital cities.
Rauf Raif Denktaş was a Turkish Cypriot politician, barrister and jurist who served as the founding president of Northern Cyprus. He occupied this position as the president of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus between the declaration of the de facto state by Denktaş in 1983 and 2005, as the president of the Turkish Federated State of Cyprus between 1975 and 1983 and as the president of the Autonomous Turkish Cypriot Administration between 1974 and 1975. He was also elected in 1973 as the vice-president of the Republic of Cyprus.
North Nicosia or Northern Nicosia is the capital and largest city of the de facto state of Northern Cyprus. It is the northern part of the divided city of Nicosia, and is governed by the Nicosia Turkish Municipality. As of 2011, North Nicosia had a population of 61,378 and a metropolitan area with a population of 82,539.
Serdar Denktaş is son of Rauf Denktaş, the former President of the de facto Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.
The United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP) is a United Nations Peacekeeping Force that was established under United Nations Security Council Resolution 186 in 1964 to prevent a recurrence of fighting following intercommunal violence between the Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots, to contribute to the maintenance and restoration of law and order and to facilitate a return to normal conditions. Major General Erdenebat Batsuuri (Mongolia) is the current Force Commander of UNFICYP, appointed in 2024, and preceded by Ingrid Gjerde (Norway).
The Nicosia District, or simply Nicosia, is one of the six districts of Cyprus. Its main town is the island country's capital city, Nicosia. The de-facto TRNC-controlled northern part of the district is the Lefkoşa District of the unrecognized Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.
The Representative Office of Northern Cyprus is a representative office of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus to the United States. The United States does not formally recognize the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, and therefore the office is legally a commercial enterprise. The staff of the Representative Offices do not have diplomatic visas and only operate within the United States using business visas. It is located at 1667 K Street, Northwest in Washington, D.C. The Representative Office in New York City is the de facto mission of the TRNC to the United Nations Organization.
The Embassy of Turkey in North Nicosia is the sole embassy in Northern Cyprus as the rest of the international community locate their embassies to the Cyprus island in the Republic of Cyprus. The island is divided between four sides; the unrecognised Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus to the north, the internationally recognised Republic of Cyprus to the south, the United Nations buffer zone separating the two, and the British overseas territories of Akrotiri and Dhekelia. The Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus is only recognised by Turkey, therefore its embassy is in the capital North Nicosia. Turkey does not recognise the Republic of Cyprus. The incumbent ambassador is Metin Feyzioğlu since 28 November 2022.
The Embassy of Northern Cyprus in Ankara is the diplomatic mission of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus to the Republic of Turkey. It is located in the Gaziosmanpaşa district of Ankara. The incumbent ambassador is İsmet Korukoğlu since 14 September 2022.
Northern Cyprus is recognised only by Turkey, a country which facilitates many of its contacts with the international community. After it was occupied by Turkey, Northern Cyprus' relations with the rest of the world were further complicated by a series of United Nations resolutions which declared its independence legally invalid. A 2004 UN Referendum on settling the Cyprus dispute was accepted by the Turkish Cypriots but rejected by the Greek Cypriots. After that, the European Union declared its intentions to assist in reducing the economic isolation of Northern Cyprus and began giving aid to the territory. However, due to pressure from Greece and the Republic of Cyprus, this aid coming from EU funds cannot be used on Greek Cypriot land and property nor on public bodies. As a result, these funds can be used only on 29 percent of people on the island of Cyprus.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Northern Cyprus:
Skylloura is a village located in the Nicosia District of Cyprus, about halfway between the towns of Morphou and Nicosia. It is administered by the Lefkoşa District of Northern Cyprus. In the town the two main roads Morphou-Nicosia and Kyrenia-Lapithos-Skylloura meet.
Malia is a village in the Limassol District of Cyprus, located 4 km south of Omodos.
Tahsin Ertuğruloğlu is a Turkish Cypriot politician. He served as a member of the Assembly of the Republic representing the Lefkoşa District between 1998 and 2018. During this time, he was a member of the National Unity Party (UBP) between 1998 and 2010, serving as the leader of the party between 2006 and 2008. He returned to the UBP in 2012 and remained its representative until the end of his tenure as an MP. He served in different ministerial positions, including a five-year tenure as the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Defense between 1998 and 2004.
Northern Cyprus and the United States do not have official diplomatic relations as the United States does not recognize Northern Cyprus as a sovereign nation and instead recognizes the region of Northern Cyprus as part of Cyprus. Despite no formal relations between the two nations, Northern Cyprus has appointed Ambassadors to the United States and has a representative office in Washington, D.C. which serves as its de facto embassy. Northern Cyprus also maintains a Representative office in New York City serving as a de facto consulate-general and as a de facto Permanent Mission to the United Nations. The United States on the other hand has a diplomatic office in North Nicosia as part of its embassy in Nicosia to Cyprus.