The Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) said on Thursday it would not recognize or engage with the EU's "special representative for Cyprus," stressing that the appointment carries no legitimacy because it was made without their consent.
In a statement, the Foreign Ministry of the TRNC said the EU's decision to appoint Raffaele Fitto, an executive vice president of the European Commission responsible for cohesion and reforms, as its representative was made at the request of the Greek Cypriot administration.
The ministry described the move as another attempt by the bloc to interfere in the decades-old dispute.
The statement came ahead of Fitto's planned trip to the island and after U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres made a rare, two-day visit earlier this week.
The ministry said the EU had lost its neutrality on the Cyprus issue when it admitted the Greek Cypriot administration to the bloc in 2004, disregarding the will of the Turkish Cypriot people.
