Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades stressed on Sunday the need to create conditions for a state in Cyprus which will be  harmonized with the acquis communautaire, will guarantee security and peace and will not be controlled by a third country.

He also called on everyone to join forces and work together in order to reunify the island. He noted  the Greek Cypriot side`s good will to reach a settlement, after the Turkish invasion of the island in 1974, indicating that the only reason for not achieving a solution that could be accepted by Greek Cypriots is the Turkish intransigence.

Anastasiades also said that despite the progress that has been achieved during the talks on the Cyprus problem, Turkish interventions, the will of Turkey to control through the Turkish Cypriot side the state in which the Republic of Cyprus would evolve, and its will to turn Cyprus into a Turkish protectorate or a state that would follow Ankara’s orders, with a view to pursue not the interests of the people of Cyprus but the interests of Turkey, led the new effort to a deadlock.

He noted that it was not possible for the Greek Cypriot side to accept the Turkish demands, adding that the UN Secretary- General himself has said that without addressing and solving the issue of security, there can be no solution to the Cyprus problem.

At the same time, Anastasiades reiterated that efforts for a settlement will continue, noting his will and determination to do so. He recalled that he has already conveyed to the UNSG his readiness, regardless of whether there are elections or not, to participate anew in a dialogue on the internal aspects of the Cyprus problem.

He said that only then he will be ready to participate in a new Conference on Cyprus, if this Conference is prepared appropriately, with a view to prevent repetition of what happened in Mont Pelerin, Geneva and Crans-Montana.

Cyprus has been divided since 1974, when Turkey invaded and occupied its northern third. The latest round of UN-backed negotiations, in Crans-Montana, Switzerland, ended inconclusively in July 2017.