Cyprus-Forum.com

[zan]

PASOK leader meets Cyprus president in NYC

A solution to the Cyprus problem must abide by the principles and acquis of the European Union, of which the Republic of Cyprus is a member-state, and not only by United Nations resolutions, main opposition PASOK leader and Socialist International (SI) President George Papandreou said in New York on Friday.

Speaking to reporters after a meeting with Cyprus President Demetris Christofias on the sidelines of the 63rd UN General Assembly, Papandreou also hailed the start of substantive negotiations aimed to resolve the island republic's protracted political problem.

"In the European Union there is no need of other guarantors," Papandreou said in a clear reference to Turkey's insistence on a Cyprus solution being guaranteed by third countries.

"The solution must be able to function effectively and to the benefit of Cypriots in the framework of the European family," Papandreou also said, committing to do everything in the framework of the SI in this direction.

President Christofias, on his part, said he hoped the Turkish Cypriot side would demonstrate the same good will for a Cyprus solution.

"I want to believe that the Turkish Cypriot side will demonstrate the same good will so as to advance, even more so when it is anxious for a solution as soon as possible," he said.

The Cyprus president noted that the Greek Cypriot side had no objection to this, but noted, however, that there were certain parameters to the problem "such as governance and other important and crucial aspects on which we have not yet touched."

The Cypriot president thanked Papandreou for "all his efforts and the SI's positions" on Cyprus.

A fresh attempt to reach a solution of the Cyprus problem began this September when the leaders of the two communities in Cyprus, Christofias and Turkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat, began substantive negotiations with a view to reunify Cyprus.



I thought Christofias said for this to be an all Cypriot affair......Or did he just mean that the UN should stay out.......Seems like man speak with trident tongue!!!!!

[utu]

I thought Christofias said for this to be an all Cypriot affair......Or did he just mean that the UN should stay out.......Seems like man speak with trident tongue!!!!!

The same accusation had been leveled against Talat, Zan. Talk is cheap. What comes out of these talks is what will matter...

[zan]

I thought Christofias said for this to be an all Cypriot affair......Or did he just mean that the UN should stay out.......Seems like man speak with trident tongue!!!!!

The same accusation had been leveled against Talat, Zan. Talk is cheap. What comes out of these talks is what will matter...

Talat made his speech and has stuck by it.....Besides..Why should Talat always get the bad press.....Just doing my part.

[humanist]

That is excactly what I like to see clear and educated artices on unification of two peoples of the same country. I am happy to shout for the roof top that Christofias has been a genetleman in this process as opposed to Talat who ofcourse as a Turkish speaking Cypriots resultsa in personal attacks. Zito I Kypros

Thinking Through the "Cyprus Problem," an Interview with Andros Kyprianou
By Combined Sources


click here for related stories: peace/antiwar
9-26-08, 9:29 am

Editor's note: Andros Kyprianou is of the political bureau of AKEL, the leading party in Cyprus. This interview appeared Charavhghi Newspaper earlier this month.

Question: Do you share Talat's estimation that a solution of the Cyprus problem can be reached even within 2008?

AD: The solution of the Cyprus problem is not a question of time. It is a question of political will and readiness for a solution on an agreed basis. Our goal is to be in line with the frameworks as defined by the relevant resolutions of the United Nations, the High-Level Agreements, International and European Law. However if the other side has decided to negotiate with the President of the Republic within these parameters and its goal will be sincere towards the direction of finding a solution, then a solution could be attained even by the end of the year. If however the attempt of the other side will be the imposition of a solution on the Greek Cypriots that will not be acceptable, then a solution will not be reached even in a hundred years.

When the President of the Republic stresses that the Greek Cypriot side with the acceptance of a bi-zonal bi-communal federal solution has exhausted its limits and cannot proceed beyond these limits who is he mainly referring to?

AD: To the Turkish side. He has made this quite clear. Neither the solution of confederation, which was Denktash's demand since August 1997, can be accepted, nor also will a two-state solution be accepted. Just as a solution that will emerge from a "virgin state," as Turkish and Turkish Cypriot officials repeatedly state, cannot be accepted. It is evident for us that any solution reached must be sought within the framework of a bi-zonal, bi-communal federation as set out by the relevant resolutions of the United Nations and not as it is interpreted by the Turkish side. The state that shall be established will be one, united, with a single sovereignty, a single international personality and a single citizenship.

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Could it even be seen as a reply to all those on the domestic front who are complaining or grumbling about a "political stand of non-resistance" or who are claiming that the President has not submitted the "red lines" of our side?

AD: I repeat a view that infuriated some circles when it was expressed. All people of good will and faith know that Dimitris Christofias in his more than 20 years of service in the higher echelons of Cypriot political life has in practice proved that he is a person who bases his entire political actions on principles, both as far as the efforts to reach a solution to the Cyprus problem is concerned, but also concerning issues regarding internal administration. It is not conceivable that Dimitris Christofias will accept a bad solution of the Cyprus problem. This must be clear to both to Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots and to Turkey and to the international community.

Therefore, all those circles that are trying to convey the message that Dimitris Christofias is ready to make unacceptable compromises I consider as people who are perhaps serving certain political expediencies; they are people who disagree with a bi-zonal bi-communal federal solution and are trying to present this disagreement of theirs in a more refined way by accusing Dimitris Christofias of allegedly making unacceptable concessions. The President of the Republic will never accept a bad solution.

Negotiations began on the 3rd of September. The character of the procedure underway since Wednesday may have been ceremonial; however it was a procedure that sent out many clear messages. How do you see it developing? How does AKEL see it proceeding?

AD: The full-fledged negotiations were the result of very hard work carried out by the President of the Republic and the relative positive response by Mehmet Ali Talat. When I say positive I refer to the efforts for the commencing of the dialogue. We shall see whether Mr. Talat will insist during the negotiations on the unacceptable positions projected in general by the Turkish side all through this time or if he will show a readiness to negotiate in a serious manner and good will with Dimitris Christofias.

We welcome the start of the negotiations, noting however that the continuation will not be easy. With the surfacing of some obstacles and difficulties a discussion commences immediately in the Greek Cypriot community, either by the mass media or political personalities in which a climate of anxiety is cultivated. We should not be surprised by these developments.

No one has said that the road ahead is easy and without any obstacles whatsoever. It will be a path with many hardships. Therefore we should be cool-headed, prudent and tackle all of these hardships with political reasoning. We should expect that there will be difficulties ahead. We must be prepared to tackle them resolutely, in a determined fashion and in a way that will contribute to their overcoming. This is the goal of the President of the Republic.

From there on, our own appeal to Mr. Talat is to be conscious of the crucial period of time and to understand that he needs to cooperate with the President of the Republic on the basis of principles if they also are truly interested in the achievement of the solution. That is to say that AKEL is cautiously optimistic?

AD: We do have a cautious optimism, which derives from the fact that Turkey wants to "free itself" from the Cyprus problem; a problem which she comes up against on the road to accession to the European Union. Our optimism, even if it is guarded, also stems form the fact that Mehmet Ali Talat is aware that if there is no progress on the Cyprus problem, with the possibility of a solution discernable, then he himself and also the Republican Turkish Party will face serious problems among the Turkish Cypriot community.

These findings, these assessments convey certain optimistic messages. The effort of the President of the Republic – which is very difficult indeed – will, we are sure, turn to encouraging Mr. Talat to cooperate with him and on the other hand to convince Turkey that it is also in her interest and to her benefit to attain a solution that will be acceptable to both communities in Cyprus. The Cypriot people as a whole must support this procedure which has began and mainly to support the efforts being undertaken by the President of the Republic.

That is how you also reply to all those circles who are claiming – particularly referring to the President, AKEL and all those supporting the procedure underway – that excessive hopes surrounding the new efforts on the Cyprus problem have been cultivated.

AD: We have been hearing this story tale from the very day that Dimitris Christofias was elected to the Presidency of the Republic; that is to say, that some circles are cultivating excessive expectations among the people. The President of the Republic has never operated in this way. Dimitris Christofias has always tried to convey balanced messages to the people and to put things in their proper dimensions. He notes that he will make every effort to create the preconditions to arrive at the solution by clarifying that the realities in which he would be operating in would be very difficult. Both Dimitris Christofias and AKEL have said this many times over. If therefore excessive hopes were cultivated or that some circles strove to cultivate among the people, this does not concern neither the government nor AKEL.

Will the fact that important issues, such as the property and territorial issue, have not been adequately examined in the Working Groups not make the negotiations of the two leaders difficult?

AD: Our own attempt was that all of these issues be discussed in the greatest possible detail in the Working Groups. Of course there are issues whose completion of the discussion was difficult even before the dialogue between the two leaders began.

We can observe some realities before us. In some Working Groups satisfactory work has been carried out, in others the work done is not satisfactory, while in certain Working Groups substantive discussions have not even been conducted.

The President of the Republic is determined and resolute. He knows that he himself must engage in a discussion with Mr. Talat in order to conclude the various issues. He knows very well indeed that justice is on our side. He has all the arguments which are demanded in order to convince at the negotiating table about the correctness of our own views and approaches. He knows very well that he will negotiate these issues on the basis of principles and without submissiveness and compliance. I stress this point because some circles are confusing the word flexibility with the word submissiveness.

The President of the Republic will negotiate very hard and will strive so that the agreements he will achieve will be to the benefit of both Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots. We would have preferred to have had more progress on some issues in the Working Groups, but this does not frighten us. On the contrary, we have full confidence in the President of the Republic, who has great self-confidence and is going to these negotiations with determination in order to prove the correctness of our own positions.

What took place with the banning of the passing through the Limnitis crossing point has affected the climate in view of the direct talks. However, the opening of a crossing point does not constitute the solution of the Cyprus problem, even if it does certainly constitute a breach in the wall of separation. How can this climate be overturned?

AD: Precisely, the opening of the crossing point does not deal with the essence of the Cyprus problem. However, at the same time it conveys a message in relation to the intentions of the Turkish side. The worst thing of all in this concrete case is that whilst Mr. Talat and his counsellor Mr. Ozdil Nami made promises regarding the crossing point and mainly concerning the possibility of the inhabitants of the Pyrgos region to be allowed to pass to Agios Mamas in order to carry out their religious duties, in the end it seems that the occupation army intervened, resulting in the crossing not taking place.

This is precisely where the anxiety that has developed, not only among the inhabitants of the region but also among Greek Cypriots as a whole; that is to say, whether Mr. Talat will face insurmountable obstacles and difficulties during the negotiations which stem from Turkey. If Mr. Talat goes to the negotiations in good faith and with good will that will be focused within the framework of all that we have outlined previously – the resolutions of the United Nations, the High-Level Agreements etc. – then some different messages will be conveyed to public opinion. It will send out the message that he is ready for substantive negotiations. Of course, we would also have liked to have seen some more essential steps that would convey positive messages.

For example?

AD: The withdrawal of a significant part of the occupational troops, the return of Famagusta to its lawful inhabitants. These would represent actions with many and important messages to the Greek Cypriots; that there is a disposition on behalf of the other side for a serious effort towards the achievement of the solution.

The President of the Republic, some circles are claiming, is going to the talks with his positions known a priori or claiming that some demands of the other side have been accepted. Around this they are building up scaremongering and the cultivation of fear among the people.

AD: I repeat that the President of the Republic shall discus every aspect of the Cyprus problem on the basis of principles. At the same time, he will handle the issues with flexibility and a modern approach concerning how a contemporary state should function. At the National Council issues regarding the aspects of the Cyprus problem have repeatedly been discussed. From there on, I would like to recall that the role of the National Council is advisory.

In order for its decisions to be obligatory, they must be unanimous. When there is no unanimity, the President decides. This derives from the rules of functioning of the National Council. I recall that in April 2005, as a result of the vigorous role played then by AKEL, the National Council managed to discuss how we should put forth our positions as the Greek Cypriot side on a number of fundamental aspects of the Cyprus problem.

A great deal was said. It's not convenient to start now a public debate about what was and not approved in the so-called summary of the National Council, which, as Mr. Tasos Papadopoulos stated at the Congress of AKEL in December 2005, was binding for himself. In this summary a great deal of issues were tabled for discussion and many things were said.

We must note what is clear and evident: that the proposal for the solution of the Cyprus problem will not be approved by Dimitris Christofias and Mehmet Ali Talat. It will be approved by the Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots in separate referenda. That is why certain circles should not worry. The people as a whole will have the final say. If the people consider that the provisions of the agreement the two leaders will reach, if indeed they do reach such an agreement, are not good, then they will reject it.


http://www.politicalaffairs.net/article ... view/7466/

[Oracle]

This is what I've been saying all along.

Cyprus must start confidently behaving like a European. It is no longer a little sardine swimming by itself in the Med.

We need to use the full might of the EU . Only because of Turkey's instruction, we didn't thus we've been kept unnecessarily isolated and weaker.

No longer should we accept the UN to co-negotiate with us, since they are mere puppets of the US and have shown their leanings. Their role is to keep order, administrate the resolutions and help enforce them .. Policemen of the world ... but that is the end of their role. Each country (or membership of countries like EU) can then sort out their own affairs.

So the UN should take a back seat to the EU ...

http://www.cyprus-forum.com/viewtopic.php?t=19590

[zan]

This is what I've been saying all along.

Cyprus must start confidently behaving like a European. It is no longer a little sardine swimming by itself in the Med.

We need to use the full might of the EU . Only because of Turkey's instruction, we didn't thus we've been kept unnecessarily isolated and weaker.

No longer should we accept the UN to co-negotiate with us, since they are mere puppets of the US and have shown their leanings. Their role is to keep order, administrate the resolutions and help enforce them .. Policemen of the world ... but that is the end of their role. Each country (or membership of countries like EU) can then sort out their own affairs.

So the UN should take a back seat to the EU ...

http://www.cyprus-forum.com/viewtopic.php?t=19590

They know you are in the wrong dear Maria...Simple as that!!!!

[Oracle]

This is what I've been saying all along.

Cyprus must start confidently behaving like a European. It is no longer a little sardine swimming by itself in the Med.

We need to use the full might of the EU . Only because of Turkey's instruction, we didn't thus we've been kept unnecessarily isolated and weaker.

No longer should we accept the UN to co-negotiate with us, since they are mere puppets of the US and have shown their leanings. Their role is to keep order, administrate the resolutions and help enforce them .. Policemen of the world ... but that is the end of their role. Each country (or membership of countries like EU) can then sort out their own affairs.

So the UN should take a back seat to the EU ...

http://www.cyprus-forum.com/viewtopic.php?t=19590

They know you are in the wrong dear Maria...Simple as that!!!!

On what has the UN based that decision? The fact that Turkey has violated record numbers of their own Resolutions? Do they no longer believe in themselves?

Are you accusing the UN of hypocrisy?

Either way, they are ineffective as anything more than policemen and now we need to take their accumulated evidence (against Turkey) and use it to restore Cyprus-EU.

[zan]

This is what I've been saying all along.

Cyprus must start confidently behaving like a European. It is no longer a little sardine swimming by itself in the Med.

We need to use the full might of the EU . Only because of Turkey's instruction, we didn't thus we've been kept unnecessarily isolated and weaker.

No longer should we accept the UN to co-negotiate with us, since they are mere puppets of the US and have shown their leanings. Their role is to keep order, administrate the resolutions and help enforce them .. Policemen of the world ... but that is the end of their role. Each country (or membership of countries like EU) can then sort out their own affairs.

So the UN should take a back seat to the EU ...

http://www.cyprus-forum.com/viewtopic.php?t=19590

They know you are in the wrong dear Maria...Simple as that!!!!

On what has the UN based that decision? The fact that Turkey has violated record numbers of their own Resolutions? Do they no longer believe in themselves?

Are you accusing the UN of hypocrisy?

Either way, they are ineffective as anything more than policemen and now we need to take their accumulated evidence (against Turkey) and use it to restore Cyprus-EU.

You are damn right I am accusing them of Hypocrisy.....They have no guts in reversing the one decision they made in 1964 and recognising a murderous regime that had no intention of representing the TC people but wanted them off the island as a whole.....You main land Greeks helped with that...It did not work...It wil not work...I am praying that there are enough decent GC people to make sure that the only people that are forced off the island is Mainland Greeks like you tat are only concerned for Greek expansion....You are crooks of the worst kind and have no place on my island.... GO HOME mainland GREEKS

[paliometoxo]

you would think so but turkey calls all the shots in the north

[miltiades]

This is what I've been saying all along.

Cyprus must start confidently behaving like a European. It is no longer a little sardine swimming by itself in the Med.

We need to use the full might of the EU . Only because of Turkey's instruction, we didn't thus we've been kept unnecessarily isolated and weaker.

No longer should we accept the UN to co-negotiate with us, since they are mere puppets of the US and have shown their leanings. Their role is to keep order, administrate the resolutions and help enforce them .. Policemen of the world ... but that is the end of their role. Each country (or membership of countries like EU) can then sort out their own affairs.

So the UN should take a back seat to the EU ...

http://www.cyprus-forum.com/viewtopic.php?t=19590

They know you are in the wrong dear Maria...Simple as that!!!!

On what has the UN based that decision? The fact that Turkey has violated record numbers of their own Resolutions? Do they no longer believe in themselves?

Are you accusing the UN of hypocrisy?

Either way, they are ineffective as anything more than policemen and now we need to take their accumulated evidence (against Turkey) and use it to restore Cyprus-EU.

You are damn right I am accusing them of Hypocrisy.....They have no guts in reversing the one decision they made in 1964 and recognising a murderous regime that had no intention of representing the TC people but wanted them off the island as a whole.....You main land Greeks helped with that...It did not work...It wil not work...I am praying that there are enough decent GC people to make sure that the only people that are forced off the island is Mainland Greeks like you tat are only concerned for Greek expansion....You are crooks of the worst kind and have no place on my island.... GO HOME mainland GREEKS

More absolute crap from the Chief of the Grey Wolves in demanding that any mainland Greeks in Cyprus should be thrown out !! After all they arrived illegally did they Zan . 35 THOUSAND occupying Turkish troops and a further 200 or so thousand of Turkish settlers that according to International legalities they were illegally transported by Turkey into Cyprus for one and only one reason that we are all too familiar with , and this Plonker has nothing to say about them !! He demands that "HIS" Island is handed back to him !!! yet he tells us that his motherland is TURKEY and that all legally arrived foreigners must be thrown out of HIS Island. Mate I sussed you out from day one , you are the Arch...Grey Wolf , but you are on the losers side , T/Cs have had enough of your nonsense. Count on this forum alone how many !!