President of Cyprus Nicos Anastasiades announced today that he will convey during tomorrow’s meeting with the UN Secretary-General his readiness to immediately resume negotiations for a settlement on the island, in accordance with the SG’ framework and the relevant UN resolutions.
Addressing the 72nd United Nations General Assembly, in New York, President Anastasiades said it was not his aim to engage in a blame game, he attributed however the deadlock reached in the latest round of settlement talks, at Crans-Montana, last July “exclusively to the intransigent stance of Turkey” which, as he pointed out “aimed at reducing Cyprus to a Turkish protectorate”.
He said in particular that in stark contradiction to the framework of the Secretary-General and the positions of the other two guarantor powers, Turkey adopted an inflexible stance and insisted on maintaining the Treaty of Guarantee and the right of intervention, as well as a permanent presence of troops.
Despite our disappointment, he went on, the vision of the people of Cyprus is none other than ending the unacceptable status quo and establishing a federal state which would ensure to the generations of Greek and Turkish Cypriots, conditions of stability for a safe, prosperous and peaceful future.
A State, which as the President underlined, will be “free from any foreign interventions and dependencies”, “a normal state” and “a State led by Cypriots for Cypriots”.
He said moreover that thorough and solid preparation, along with strong political will and determination is required by all interested parties and stakeholders, in order to reconvene a new Conference on Cyprus and avoid a repetition of shortcomings of the past.
President Anastasiades also noted that mutually agreed Confidence Building Measures, in line with the UN Security Council resolutions and the UN Secretary General reports, would be a “game changer” for a conducive climate to resume negotiations, making particular reference to the return and resettlement of Varosha – the fenced-off part of Famagusta – to its rightful and lawful inhabitants.
This aim would be further reinforced through progress to the humanitarian issue of the missing persons, he said and called on Turkey to fully co-operate in order to resolve this tragic issue. He also urged all countries which might hold information, to open their archives in order to bring an end to this tragic aspect of the Cyprus problem.
President Anastasiades also replied to references made by the President of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, during his speech at the General Assembly. Erdoğan attributed on Wednesday the unsuccessful outcome at Crans-Montana to the “incomprehensible position of the Greek Cypriot side”.
“I would like to ask the Turkish President, is it incomprehensible to aspire to establish an independent and sovereign State, without any foreign guarantees, any right of intervention by a third country and free from the presence of occupation troops” the President of the Republic of Cyprus said.
Moreover, he posed the question if it is irrational to advocate establishing a normal State in which all decisions will be taken only by its citizens, free from foreign dependencies.
“Is it unfounded to envision terminating the anachronistic Treaty of Guarantee and establishing a robust system of security, based on the Charter of the UN and the Treaties of the EU and the Council of Europe” the President asked.
He also wondered if anyone can uphold that reaching a settlement based on the proposals of Turkey would have led to establishing a functional and viable State.
Addressing the General Assembly, the President of Cyprus said that “we are here to renew our commitment to a global order based on international law, with the principles of the UN Charter at its core”.
He added that the most vital pillar to achieving inter-state, regional and global peace is through respecting and ensuring the full and unhindered interdependency, territorial integrity and sovereignty of each and every member-state of the United Nations.
This pillar was “the most basic rule towards prohibiting foreign interventions to the territory, the exclusive economic zone or the internal affairs of an independent and sovereign member-state of the UN” the President added.
“One of the countries which unfortunately still endures the consequences of the blatant violation of the fundamental principles of the UN is my country, the Republic of Cyprus, which since the 1974 military invasion of Turkey still remains under its occupation” President Anastasiades told the Assembly.
Furthermore, he elaborated on the historical context of Turkey’s 1974 invasion in Cyprus, on the pretext of restoring the constitutional order, saying that “this led to the pain and sufferings that the people of Cyprus, Greek and Turkish Cypriots, have and are still enduring”.
This was, according to President Anastasiades, the reason for which from the very beginning since resuming negotiations “we set the goal of terminating the Treaty of Guarantee and the right of intervention, as well as agreeing to a sunset clause for the full withdrawal of foreign troops”.
He also said that in full conformity with the outline of the UN Secretary-General, he submitted “credible and realistic proposals which effectively addressed the sensitivities and concerns of both communities”, while taking into consideration the capacity of the Republic of Cyprus as a member state.
“Achieving convergences on the UN Secretary-General’s framework would have led to reaching a strategic agreement” bringing new impetus in the process, the President said.
He urged finally Turkey and the Turkish Cypriots to realize that “it is only through mutual respect and compromises and not obsolete fixations to failed practices that we will achieve a viable and lasting settlement”, leaving no winners or losers. “This is the only way for Cyprus to fully utilize its potential and exploit its unique geographical position” he added.
During his address, the President of Cyprus also underlined the need for multilateralism and said that it is only through collective efforts that we can address crises like the current one with North Korea.
He said finally that Cyprus believes that the reform priorities set by the Secretary-General are essential in ensuring that multilateralism, at a time of growing scepticism and isolationist tendencies, remains relevant and effective.
Cyprus has been divided since 1974 when Turkey invaded and occupied its northern third. The latest round of UN-peace talks commenced at the Swiss resort of Crans-Montana on June 28, but in the early hours of July 7, it was announced that the Conference on Cyprus ended without an agreement. Talks held under the auspices of the UN aim at reunifying Cyprus under a federal roof.
