Northern Cyprus
TRNC leader Rauf Denktaş (left) with UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan and former Cypriot President Glafkos Klerides
The Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), in Turkish Kuzey Kıbrıs Türk Cumhuriyeti, is a self-proclaimed state occupying the northern third of the island of Cyprus in the eastern Mediterranean. It is not recognised by any country except Turkey. All other governments and the United Nations recognise the sovereignty of the Republic of Cyprus over the whole island of Cyprus.
The TRNC has a population of about 190,000 and an area of 3,355 square kilometres. Its population is almost entirely Turkish. There are small numbers of Greeks and Lebanese. The TRNC includes the northern part of the city of Nicosia (in Turkish Lefkoşa), which serves as the TRNC's capital.
The independence of northern Cyprus was proclaimed in 1975 under the name "Turkish Federated State of Northern Cyprus." The name was changed to its present form in 1983. The area of the TRNC corresponds to the area occupied during the Turkish invasion of Cyprus in 1974. The Turkish invasion was a response to the coup attempt by Greek Cypriot extremists attempting to bring about enosis (union) with Greece.
The Republic of Cyprus has consistently refused to recognise the Turkish occupation of northern Cyprus or the 1975 declaration of independence in any way, and this refusal has been supported by all countries except Turkey. In retaliation, the TRNC refers to the Republic of Cyprus as the "Greek Cypriot Administration of Southern Cyprus".
The 1975 declaration of independence was condemned by the United Nations Security Council's Resolutions 541 and 550, which declared it legally invalid, called for Turkey's immediate withdrawal and urged all member states not to recognise it. The TRNC maintains informal relations with some Middle-Eastern countries, particularly Lebanon.
The TRNC is a democracy, with a president elected for a five-year term. President Rauf Denktaş was last elected in April 2000. The TRNC's legislature is the House of Representatives (Temsilciler Meclisi), which has 50 members elected by proportional representation from five electoral districts. The largest party is the Party of National Unity (Ulusal Birlik Partisi), which supports the maintenance of the TRNC's independence.
The TRNC is heavily dependent on Turkish military and economic support. It uses the Turkish Lira as its currency. All TRNC exports and imports are via Turkey, as are its communication links. Telephone calls are routed via Turkey's country calling code (90 392), and mail must be addressed to 'Mersin 10, TURKEY' as the Universal Postal Union refuses to recognise the TRNC as a separate entity. Ercan airport is not recognized as a port of entry, and flights must stop over in Turkey first. Anyone who has a TRNC immigration stamp may be refused entry by the Republic of Cyprus or Greece.
The forthcoming accession of the Republic of Cyprus to the European Union has produced a political crisis in the TRNC, because its residents will not have access to the privileges of EU membership, particularly the right to work anywhere in the EU, which will be open to Cypriot citizens. In 2002 there were large demonstrations in the TRNC against the continuation of the division of Cyprus.