Statement by AKEL C.C. Spokesperson Stefanos Stefanou on Turkey’s provocative actions
Our country’s response to Turkey’s policy cannot be the abandonment of our country’s sovereign rights, but neither tension nor the cultivation of illusions among the people

The further militarization of the occupied part of our homeland by Turkey is part of the general escalation of its aggression throughout the eastern Mediterranean region.

Contempt for international law, provocative behaviour against its neighbouring countries and new illegal fait accompli on the ground and at sea through the force of weapons make up the Erdogan’s strategy government. AKEL was warning about all of these actions in previous years.

In any case, however, our people’s concern about Turkey’s provocativeness is completely justified. The situation is indeed difficult and dangerous.
The ongoing and prolonged escalation of tension may lead to an uncontrolled crisis breaking out that will certainly not be in the interest of Cyprus and its people.

Our country’s response to Turkey’s policy cannot be the abandonment of our country’s sovereign rights, but neither tension nor the cultivation of illusions among the people.

If we trap ourselves in such a pseudo-dilemma, Turkey’s plans will be served.
Our policy should be to try to de-escalate the tension. It should be to defend our homeland’s rights and international law by all political and diplomatic means, in parallel with our continued readiness for a solution of the Cyprus problem based on principles, for cooperation and dialogue – not on the terms of Erdogan’s claims – but on the basis of international law and the Law of the Sea, based on peace and cooperation in the region.