Placing terms and conditions before the resumption of negotiations is a tactic that does not help create progress, President Nikos Christodoulides said on Sunday.
Speaking to journalists on the sidelines of a memorial service for the heroes of Trikomo in Limassol, Christodoulides was asked about reports that Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhürman appeared displeased by remarks made by the President in Pyla the previous evening and therefore chose not to make any statements.
“I cannot know why the Turkish Cypriot leader did not make any statements. He did not mention anything to me during the event, but I cannot know the reasons, and I do not believe I said anything that would justify any irritation,” the President said.
Asked whether his references to Ankara may have annoyed Erhürman, Christodoulides replied:
“They are not barbs. It is a clear position that the key to resolving the Cyprus problem lies in Turkey, and I specifically stated that this is without disregarding the role we ourselves can play in Cyprus.”
Addressing Erhürman’s recent interview, in which the Turkish Cypriot leader called on him to clarify his position regarding the rotating presidency within the framework of reunification discussions, Christodoulides said:
“I consider the Turkish Cypriot leader’s interview particularly revealing, especially in relation to the question you have raised. Because it is clear that, from the Turkish side, and I have informed the National Council about this aspect, conditions and preconditions are being placed on the resumption of negotiations, namely the prior acceptance by our side of specific positions that are important to the Turkish Cypriot community, without any willingness whatsoever for our own positions on other important aspects of the Cyprus problem to be discussed or accepted.
“It is for this reason that I have repeatedly said that all these issues should be discussed at the negotiating table. Setting terms and conditions before the resumption of negotiations is, in my view, a tactic that does not help bring about developments. That is why I describe the Turkish Cypriot leader’s interview as particularly revealing, because it shows why the talks have not resumed, and one of the main reasons they have still not resumed.”
Asked to comment on Erhürman’s statement that he had never received the Greek Cypriot side’s 19-point package of proposals in writing, Christodoulides said:
“As for the proposals, I never said they were submitted in writing. They were submitted verbally. He is aware of the 19 very specific proposals. On some of them he has taken a position, while on others he has not yet done so.
“The National Council is fully aware of the 19 proposals and, I repeat, we discussed this as well last night because the specific interview came up in discussion. He told me: ‘Yes, I said those issues were conveyed to me verbally, they were not given to me in writing.’”
Asked about Erhürman’s assertion that positions regarding Varosha had been attributed to him that were not accurate, the President said:
“I do not want to become involved in a game of assigning blame. I am not here for that, nor do I believe it helps in any way the effort to restart negotiations.
“This issue, and I can say this publicly, of the fenced-off city of Varosha is among the matters we have raised very specifically. It is among the issues we discussed very specifically with the UN Secretary-General recently in New York, and it is among the issues contained in the letter I sent to the UN Secretary-General.
“I do not wish to say anything further. Depending on developments, we will be here to comment. But I repeat that I genuinely believe that only the resumption of negotiations will demonstrate in practice who truly has the will to resolve the Cyprus problem. And I am referring to everyone. I am not referring only to the two communities. I am referring to the guarantor powers and to the role of Turkey.”
Asked whether anything significant was said between the two leaders during Saturday evening’s event in Pyla, Christodoulides replied:
“No, nothing negative was said. It was a social gathering. We were there to send a message of hope, a message about the need to work together to reunite our homeland.
“These kinds of meetings are important and, as I said last night when asked by your colleagues, they are important, but they are not enough to reach the desired goal. But yes, they do have their own added value.”
Asked about Turkey’s position in favour of negotiations without an open-ended timeframe, the President said:
“Everything depends on where they begin. If they begin from where they were left at Crans-Montana, we know very well what the points of disagreement are and what issues need to be discussed, and you understand that the time required would clearly be shorter.
“If some are seeking to start from the beginning, no one can determine the timeframe.”
