Cyprus, Turkey and the Two-state Solution the World Doesn’t Wanting

The beach in the Varosha quarter of Famagusta, a city in southeastern Cyprus, is one of the best-guarded beaches in the world. Turkish soldiers patrol the wall surrounding the quarter, and entry to it was forbidden until last year, when a small section of the beach was opened to Turks and Turkish Cypriots only.

All that remains of the city, which was once a major international tourist destination, are the ruins of homes bombed by the invading Turks in July 1974 as part of what Turkey called “Operation Peace for Cyprus.” Some 15,000 Greek Cypriots lived in Varosha before the invasion; all fled the bombings, leaving behind a lot of property that remains abandoned to this day

Talks held by Turkey, Greece and Cyprus over the years with European and UN mediation proved unable to bridge the gaps between the parties. The latest round, which took place in April, ended with both the Turkish and Greek delegations leaving the table.Last week, on a memorial day for soldiers killed in the Turkish invasion, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar, implemented another unilateral move. It was intended to send a clear message about their intent to determine facts on the ground that could entrench the island’s partition, regardless of the reaction from Cyprus, Greece and the rest of the world.

During a well-publicized visit to Varosha, they announced their intent to open additional parts of the quarter to civilians and invited Greek Cypriots to return to their homes there. “We do not have another 50 years to spend on solutions whose invalidity has been proven,” Erdogan said. “If it takes another 47, even 147 or 247 years, the Turkish Cypriots will not compromise their freedom. … Neither external messages nor internal initiatives have any value other than empty noise in our eyes.He is correct on at least one point. The “noises” made by European countries, the United States and the United Nations following this announcement were indeed empty words. The UN Security Council issued a bland statement over the weekend saying that “no actions should be carried out in relation to Varosha that are not in accordance with its resolutions,” alongside a weak condemnation.

Such statements don’t impress Erdogan, in part because he has a weighty bargaining chip in the form of the refugee agreement he signed with the European Union. His threat to open Turkey’s gates to refugees who want to go to Europe has so far prevented European sanctions on Turkey over much more important issues, like Ankara’s purchase of Russian anti-aircraft missiles, the drilling for gas in parts of the Mediterranean Sea where Greece claims exclusive rights, and its policy in Syria.

The Cyprus crisis is one of the barriers preventing Turkey from joining the European Union, but at the same time this also serves the union, which isn’t enthusiastic about having Turkey join its ranks. As long as no agreed solution to Cyprus is found, the EU can rest easy about the “threat” of a Muslim country entering it.Foreign Minister Yair Lapid also commented on the issue during a meeting with his Cypriot counterpart on Monday, saying, “We share the deep concern over the provocative moves that Turkey is making in Cyprus.”

Turkey’s position on Cyprus in general, in particular, is uncompromising. In its view, the only acceptable solution is two states for two peoples.

Or, as senior Turkish officials put it, any future talks about a diplomatic solution must be a negotiation between equals, in which Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots would negotiate as two sovereign, independent states.

Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, responded bluntly that the European Union “will never, ever accept a two-state solution” in Cyprus. The island constitutes a single state, she said, and at most it’s possible to discuss a federation between its two parts, a division of authority or autonomy.

Consequently, it’s not clear what basis U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres had for saying recently that he’s optimistic about solving the Cyprus issue.

Hareetz