Five-step road map submitted by the Turkish Cypriot side in the Cyprus negotiation
Ertug reveals a five-step road map submitted by the Turkish Cypriot side in the negotiations
Turkish Cypriot daily Halkin Sesi newspaper (09.05.14) reports that Osman Ertug, spokesman and special diplomatic advisor of the Turkish Cypriot leader Eroglu, has said that the Turkish Cypriot side had submitted a five-step road map at the table within the framework of the negotiations for finding a solution to the Cyprus problem. Addressing a conference yesterday in the occupied area of Cyprus under the title “The Cyprus negotiations: The road ahead of us”, Ertug said that the first step, which the Turkish Cypriot side had suggested, has been completed as it was the “screening process”.
He noted that the second step which they suggested was implementing an effective methodology by holding meetings twice a week or all day long meetings if the Greek Cypriot side did not accept this, focusing on the unsolved main issues in the meetings held either between the negotiators or between the leaders, submitting bridging proposals, preserving the existing convergences and holding new cross-visits to Athens and Ankara in the beginning of May.
The third step provided for a meeting of the sides with the UN Secretary-General in May and the fourth step for the completion of the exercise of submitting bridging proposals in the beginning of June. The fifth and final step provided for holding a multilateral conference in the end of June with the participation of the two sides in Cyprus, Turkey, Greece, the UN and the UK, if the latter wanted. The “final bargaining” would be carried out in the meeting, during which the date of the simultaneous separate referenda could be agreed, in case the meeting ended successfully. He argued that if this meeting fails, the reason of this failure should be discussed and established.
Ertug argued that the Greek Cypriot side has not submitted to the table its own road map, in spite of the fact that it generally reacted negatively to the Turkish Cypriot side’s road map, except for some steps.
Referring to what he considers as “some important difficulties of the negotiations”, Ertug alleged that among these difficulties are the wish of the Greek Cypriot side for the “new partnership” to be a transformation of the Republic of Cyprus into a federation, the fact that the Greek Cypriot side does not accept the rotating presidency and instead of this it proposes a Turkish Cypriot vice president who will not have the right of veto and a cabinet which will be formed by seven Greek Cypriot and three Turkish Cypriot Ministers and which will take decisions with simple majority.
Ertug alleged that the Greek Cypriot side exhibits a maximalist approach on the issue of the territory, demanding that 100 thousand Greek Cypriots should settle on the land which will be returned to them [Translator’s note: Under the administration of the Greek Cypriot Federal State] and at the same time 60 thousand Greek Cypriots should have the priority on the issue of deciding whether they want to return to their currently occupied property [Translator’s note: under Turkish Cypriot administration].
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