Cyprus President Demetris Christofias has said that despite Turkish threats against Cyprus and the negative stance of the Turkish side in the negotiations, the struggle to solve the Cyprus problem will continue. He noted that the government will continue to defend the Republic of Cyprus sovereign rights, while preparations of the EU Cypriot Presidency will intensify.
Christofias underlined the need for unity in the domestic front, especially now that he will be travelling to New York for his meeting with UN Secretary General Ban Ki moon and Turkish Cypriot leader Dervis Eroglu.
Addressing a concert organized here under the title “Above all, Cyprus”, Christofias noted that Turkey has been culminating its provocations and aggressiveness towards Cyprus and threatens the Republic of Cyprus which has launched research for hydrocarbons in the island’s Exclusive Economic Zone.
Christofias also noted that the Turkish side maintains a negative stance at the ongoing talks aiming to solve the problem of Cyprus, divided since the Turkish invasion of the island in 1974.
“Its non constructive behaviour at the negotiating table reduces prospects for a settlement», he noted, adding that “we have no right to abandon our struggle and compromise with the occupation and the division.”
He assured that “we will continue our struggle aiming to lift all obstacles and reach a settlement,” noting that “we will stop to face Turkey’s negativity by continuing our intense mobilization worldwide. We will continue to defend our principles, remaining however realists at the negotiating table,” Christofias noted.
He stressed that “we will continue to defend and exercise our country’s sovereign rights, as we have been doing with the research for natural gas,” adding that “we will intensively continue preparations for the Cypriot European Union Presidency, to promote the potentials and the role of our country as an equal European state, which irrelevant of the problems its facing, can contribute in the promotion of European affairs.“
Referring to the world economic crisis, President Christofias said that “we are intensively and continuously trying to address the repercussions of the crisis and we are working hard to solve financial problems which have been accumulated for decades, in a balanced way, through dialogue among social partners, with caution and consensus.”