Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan left the reception area at the United Nations COP31 summit in Antalya on Wednesday as President Nikos Christodoulides arrived, leaving UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on his own.
Diplomatic sources described Erdogan’s departure as “a sign of contempt for the United Nations”, under whose auspices the summit is being held.
Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhurman arrived at the venue well before the welcome ceremony, and Erdogan was waiting for him there. The two posed for photographs together.
Guterres appeared later, when heads of state and government began to arrive. Under protocol, he and Erdogan were to welcome the leaders together. Because Erdogan left, he did not appear in the same frame as Christodoulides.
The Turkish government had tried to avoid sending an invitation to the Cypriot president for the Antalya summit. Erdogan sent Erhurman a personal letter inviting him.
Meeting with von der Leyen
Before the summit opened, Christodoulides held a private meeting with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. Government sources said they discussed developments in the Cyprus problem, EU-Turkey relations and Cyprus’s bid to join the Schengen area.
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