TRNC's 'transport minister' wants retaliation against the south: Calls for arrest of Greek Cypriots using Turkish Cypriot properties in the south

TRNC 'transport minister' Erhan Arıklı, announced on Tuesday that the government of north Cyprus plan to issue arrest warrants against individuals allegedly using Turkish Cypriot-owned properties in the south of Cyprus without the consent of the original owners.

Speaking to Kibris Genc TV, Arıklı said these measures are in response to recent arrests of individuals accused of selling Greek Cypriot-owned properties in the north.

“One of the steps we will take is issuing arrest warrants for those using Turkish Cypriot properties in the south, whether for rental purposes or otherwise,” he said.

He added that the response from the TRNC government would be “tougher” than the measures taken so far by the Republic of Cyprus.

“These steps may provoke different reactions, but no one will be able to accuse us. When we open Varosha, no one will be in a position to ask ‘why are you opening it?’” he said, expressing concern that the current situation may negatively affect the upcoming high-level meeting on the Cyprus issue in New York.

Describing the planned meeting as a “glorified holiday,” Arıklı said he expects it to mark the “end of hope” for progress on the Cyprus issue.

He also warned of repercussions for the island’s crossing points, which he said had facilitated peaceful interaction and economic cooperation between the two communities.

“That economic balance will be lost. The hope of opening new crossings, especially after the March meeting in Geneva, has now been abandoned due to these arrests,” he said.

“In fact, we may not even need the current crossing points. If sanctions escalate, people will be discouraged from crossing south, making new crossings irrelevant.”

His remarks followed statements by north Cyprus’s ‘prime minister’ Ünal Üstel, who on Sunday accused President Nikos Christodoulides of adopting an “aggressive, terroristic approach” to the property issue.

Üstel claimed that the Greek Cypriot leadership once suggested they would accept the economic cost of a solution with the Turkish Cypriots, but are now “fearful of our economic progress.”

He alleged that recent legal actions targeting property investors in the north are part of a politically motivated campaign led by Christodoulides.

However, Cypriot government spokesperson Konstantinos Letymbiotis said last week that the arrests are strictly legal in nature, emphasizing that “the Republic of Cyprus is acting within the framework of the rule of law” and that the actions are intended to protect fundamental human rights.

When asked whether halting prosecutions could help the peace process, Letymbiotis responded that “impunity for property or human rights violations cannot be a prerequisite for negotiations or goodwill.”

President Christodoulides reaffirmed last week that the arrests “will not stop, regardless of what [TRNC president Ersin Tatar says,” asserting that “illegality cannot be justified in any way.” However, he also noted that the government does not interfere in judicial matters.

Last month, two Hungarian nationals were sentenced to prison after admitting to promoting the sale of properties near Kyrenia online. Separately, a German national is under investigation after allegedly discussing property sales in north Cyprus. Authorities have also issued arrest warrants for four Turkish nationals in relation to property developments in Lefke, in the Famagusta region.