A cross-party group of influential politicians have urged Lord Cameron to end the UK’s punitive and unfair ban on direct flights to Northern Cyprus.

Last week, the parliamentarians wrote to Lord Cameron, the Foreign Secretary, raising serious concerns over the treatment of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) and calling for “the commencement of direct flights from the United Kingdom to Ercan International Airport – the largest airport on the island of Cyprus”.

They want the Foreign Secretary to end “one of the most restrictive policies of any country in Europe when it comes to air travel to Ercan”.

The move by more than fifty parliamentarians and politicians, including former Foreign Secretary Jack Straw, highlights the hypocrisy of the UK’s current position. They point to the UK allowing flights to non-UN member states such as Kosovo, and to countries that it doesn’t recognise such as Taiwan. The question is “why not to Northern Cyprus?”

Air travel to the TRNC is not a risk and there is no history of poor safety. Indeed, Ercan Airport abides by international aviation security standards, and safely hosts hundreds of thousands of passengers each year.

They warn that if the UK continues to fail to engage with the TRNC, it will “risk letting countries such as Russia and Iran do so instead – fundamentally challenging the UK’s strategic foothold in the eastern Mediterranean.”

This call for action from the 300,000 strong Turkish Cypriot diaspora comes as a new general election has been announced. Turkish Cypriots, their friends and families, will
also be putting pressure on both the Government and other major parties to commit to ending this unjust situation.

Chet Ramadan, founder of Freedom and Fairness for Northern Cyprus, said: “It is time that the UK ends their regressive ban on flights to the TRNC. This is something that was promised 20 years ago and has yet to be fulfilled.

“300,000 Turkish Cypriots live in the UK, and 15,000 British expats live in Northern Cyprus. The onerous and unnecessary flight rules only create a cruel burden for those wishing to visit family members or go on holiday.

“UK parties must commit to allowing direct flights to restart and we will repeat this call to whoever forms the next government.”