Excerpt on Cyprus from Turkish Foreign Ministry’s Press Release regarding the 2011 EU’s Progress Report for Turkey

The Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs published in its webpage (12.10.11, www.mfa.gov.tr) a press release regarding EU’s Progress Report for Turkey released yesterday. On the Cyprus problem the Ministry says the following:

“On the other hand, the “Cyprus” issue is also mentioned in the report. The solution of the Cyprus problem and Turkey’s membership to the EU are two different processes. Turkey has so far provided every support to the ongoing negotiation process on the Island and, in line with its rights and obligations as a guarantor state, it has encouraged, through its concrete contributions, the achievement of an agreement in the negotiations as soon as possible. Indeed, as it is also stated in the report, the support of our country for a comprehensive settlement is also acknowledged by the UN Secretary-General. In this context, Turkey is fully supporting the intensive and sincere efforts resolutely carried out by the Turkish Cypriot side to reach a comprehensive settlement agreement until the end of the year in line with the expectation of the UN Secretary General. This being the case, we regret that the Enlargement Strategy Document contains expressions regarding the expectation from Turkey to increase its contribution to the negotiations.

The Report also addresses the issue of Additional Protocol with a biased approach reflecting the Greek Cypriot point of view. Turkey’s understanding that all restrictions on Cyprus should be lifted has been proven several times, with the Action Plan it proposed in 2006, as well as with its stance vis-?-vis the most recent EU initiative by the Belgian Presidency and the Commission at the end of last year. It is a serious shortcoming that the report disregards the fact that all these initiatives could not move forward due to the negative attitude of the Greek Cypriot side.

The Enlargement Strategy Document also refers, in a biased manner, to the crisis that stemmed from the unilateral acts of the Greek Cypriot side in the Eastern Mediterranean. In this period when the UN comprehensive settlement negotiations are underway, which are the clearest demonstration of the fact that the Greek Cypriots have neither rights over the whole of the Island nor the authority to decide on behalf of the Turkish Cypriots, the Greek Cypriot side should be expected to focus on the settlement process, to demonstrate its will to that end, and thus, to suspend its drilling activities, instead of resorting to such provocations. Under these circumstances, addressing the issue from the perspective of “the sovereign rights of EU members” by disregarding the principle of justice, reflects the Greek Cypriot efforts to impose their unilateral EU membership and contradicts the founding principles that the Union is based upon. This issue has nothing to do with good neighborly relations; the Greek Cypriots should reach an agreement with the Turkish Cypriots, who are co-owners of the Island and their real counterparts. This is the only way for reaching a settlement that will contribute to maintaining of peace and cooperation in the region and the equitable sharing of the natural resources of the Island by the two peoples who are its co-owners. During his meeting with the UN Secretary General on 24 September 2011 in New York, the President of the TRNC, Mr. Eroglu, presented a proposal for breaking stalemate on this issue. This proposal, which could positively contribute to the comprehensive solution, was conveyed to the Greek Cypriots through the UN. However, instead of treating it in a constructive way, they returned the proposal”.