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President Ersin Tatar observes Martyr Lieutenant Caner Gönyeli 2022 Search and Rescue exercise

“This exercise has shown what can be achieved with  cooperation between the TRNC and the Republic of Türkiye.”

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President Ersin Tatar observed the Martyr Lieutenant Caner Gönyeli 2022 Search and Rescue exercise, which was successfully carried out off the coast of Gazimağusa.

The jointly held annual sea exercise, which was carried out by military and civil search and rescue units of the Republic of Türkiye and the TRNC, was observed by the President from the TCSG Yaşam corvette of the Coast Guard Command.   

Commending the units and those involved in the exercise, President Tatar said: “These types of exercises, that are carried out in cooperation between the TRNC and the Republic of Türkiye, is a clear demonstration as to what can be achieved in showing the capabilities of our units, in our maritime waters and our exclusive economic zone in the eastern Mediterranean.  I commend all involved for this successful exercise, which has shown the readiness of our teams in the event of such incidents.”
 
President Tatar stated that the exercise involved different scenarios, life-saving methods and the use of different types of equipment which had been observed in detail, adding that “the success of this exercise and the equipment used has also shown our superiority in the  seas of our region".
 
The President thanked the Ministry of Interior of the Republic of Türkiye, Coast Guard Command, Security Forces Command and Cyprus Turkish Peace Forces Command, and he emphasised the importance of cooperation between the Republic of Türkiye and the TRNC. 
 
President Tatar added: “We are doing our best to maintain peace. We witnessed together the importance of the work carried out in Blue Homeland, in the seas, and we have all observed just how important it has been with regards to surveying for hydrocarbons. . .we observed what can be achieved with cooperation between the TRNC and the Republic of Türkiye.” 
 
Commander of the Turkish Coast Guard, Major General Ahmet Kendir, stated that the objective of the exercise was to develop "coordination and cooperation" between the search and rescue units of the TRNC and Türkiye.
 
Alongside President Ersin Tatar, the Speaker of the Parliamentary Assembly, Zorlu Töre, local and foreign observers, the family of Martyr Lieutenant Caner Gönyeli and many members of the press also observed the exercise.