The Speaker of the UK House of Commons embarked on an official visit to Cyprus on Monday, but in the process risks upsetting the divided island’s Turkish-Cypriot community.
Lindsay Hoyle becomes the first Speaker of the Commons to make the trip to the Mediterranean island after an official invite from his Cypriot opposite number – who will host a dinner in his honour.
During his three-day visit, Mr Hoyle will also meet the Cypriot president and foreign minister of the internationally recognised government, which controls the majority of the island and is a member of the EU.
But he is not expected to meet the Turkish-Cypriot breakaway administration that runs the north of Cyprus, and is only recognised by Turkey.
The Council of Turkish Cypriots Association UK urged Mr Hoyle to “take this valuable opportunity” and extend his visit to the north of the island.
The council said a visit “would show equality and step forward for new negotiations between” the UK government and the Turkish-Cypriot administration.
Cyprus has been split since 1974 when Turkey invaded northern Cyprus following a brief Greek-backed coup. Repeated diplomatic efforts to find a solution have failed to make headway.
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The old town square of Varosha where many events used to take place. The seaside resort has been under Turkish occupation since the Mediterranean island Cyprus split in two in 1974. All photos: Silvio Rusmigo / The National -
The beachfront of Varosha. In its heyday, the glamorous area, in the city of Famagusta, was considered to be the crown jewel of Cyprus -
An abandoned hotel with its empty swimming pool. The once bustling and colourful place became a ghost town after Turkish troops sealed off the area to its 17,000 former Greek-speaking residents in 1974 -
Tourists walk through Varosha. The Turkish-Cypriot administration reopened a sliver of the town this year, with plans for a wider demilitarisation of the area -
Cyclists use a recently repaired road -
For Lenia Nikolou, who fled her home town as a 20-year-old newlywed in 1974, visiting the places of her youth today invokes a mixture of happiness, anger and pain -
Lenia Nikolou walks through the quiet streets of Varosha on a trip down memory lane -
Serdar Atai says his Turkish-Cypriot father volunteered to order the inhabitants, many of whom he knew, to leave Varosha -
A ruined shop lies vacant
While much of the international community and the recognised Cypriot government favour a federal solution, Turkey and the administration in the north back a two-state future.
The UK is one of three guarantor countries of Cypriot independence under a convoluted 1960 treaty.
