Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Monday repeated his demand for a two-state solution to the Cyprus problem during a speech to the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC)’s standing committee for economic and commercial cooperation (Comcec).

“The Turkish Cypriot people are an integral part of the Islamic world. It is a tragic development that they have been subjected to an unjust, unlawful and merciless isolation to decades just because of their identity,” he said.

Despite this, he said, “our Turkish Cypriot brothers and sisters have not bowed to the pressure”.

“They have not abandoned their will to live honourably in their own homeland. They have not questioned their sovereign equality. We are receiving strong signals that a new imperialist game is being constructed in our region, and they are attempting to add Cyprus to the menu,” he said.

As such, he said, the OIC and its members must “further strengthen their solidarity with the Turkish Cypriot people”.

“I expect you to further support the Turkish Cypriots’ fight for rights, freedom and justice, which is based on a two-state solution. As the motherland and guarantor power, we will never abandon the Turkish Cypriot people and will always stand by them in their just cause,” he said.

Erdogan’s repetition of a demand for a two-state solution to the Cyprus problem appears to put him immediately at odds with Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhurman, who was elected to the role by a landslide margin last month.

Erhurman has long been an advocate for a federal solution to the Cyprus problem, and in the immediate aftermath of the election, Erdogan appeared to be willing to acquiesce to the idea of a return to negotiations, saying that the Turkish Cypriots’ will is “highly respected by us”.

“Our relations with North Cyprus will continue as they have been until now under the AK Party government,” he told journalists five days after the election, referencing his party’s 23-year stint in power so far.

However, prior to that, he had in September ruled out any return to negotiations towards a federal solution regardless of who won October’s election.

He had been asked whether Turkey’s policy regarding Cyprus “could change based on the … election results” and answered that “our minds and policies on the Cyprus issue are clear”.

“The matter of federation is now closed for us. No one can draw us back into talks for a federation with wordplay. Turkish Cypriots will never accept being a minority on the island. The only realistic solution is to accept the existence of two states on the island,” he said.

This comment was seen by some to be a response to Erhurman’s insistence during the campaign that a federal solution would be formed by “two equal founding partner states”.

Throughout the campaign, Erhurman insisted that Cyprus problem negotiations would be conducted “in tandem with the Republic of Turkey”, and had promised to visit Turkey within days of being sworn in, but as yet, no visit to Turkey has yet been announced.

Last Friday, he announced that he had delayed his planned first meeting with United Nations envoy Maria Angela Holguin, and that instead of the originally planned first meeting between Monday and November 11, they will now most likely meet on December 5.

This delay came at Erhurman’s behest and will also likely see the next enlarged meeting on the Cyprus problem, involving Cyprus’ two sides, its three guarantor powers, Greece, Turkey, and the United Kingdom, and the UN, also be delayed.

It had originally been set to take place at the end of this month but will now most likely take place in January, with Erhurman set to use the extra time to attempt to build closer relations with the Turkish government.