Cyprus-Forum.com

[brother]

Talat seeks new image for Turkish Cypriot side
By Simon Bahceli


TURKISH Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat said yesterday his administration had formally abandoned its pursuit of a separate state in the north and would do all it could to establish a united Cyprus based on the political equality of the Greek and Turkish Cypriot communities.

Speaking to journalists at his ‘presidential palace’ in northern Nicosia yesterday, Talat said the north’s change of policy “from separatist to unionist” had come about as a reaction to promises by the international community that such a shift would bring the community closer to EU membership.

“We do not embrace a separatist policy: we pursue a policy of reconciliation,” he insisted.

After decades of the north being seen as secretive and isolationist, Talat was clearly seeking to improve the breakaway state’s image internationally by holding what he billed as the first of regular monthly press briefings and spoke of his wish to establish “open and transparent relations with the media”.

He also sought to turn the tables on the Greek Cypriot side by accusing it of being the side that viewed “no solution as the solution” – a policy embraced by his predecessor Rauf Denktash and the Turkish government prior to the current administration of Tayyip Erdogan.

He accused President Tassos Papadopoulos of being the one who refused to attend talks – again, ironically, something for which Denktash was famed. Turkish Cypriots, he said, “will never run away from the negotiations, talks or discussions”.

“Papadopoulos has consistently refused to meet with me, both before and after the presidential elections,” the newly-elected Turkish Cypriot leader said.

Talat warned, however, that until the Greek Cypriot side was ready to form a unified state, the north would continue efforts to develop economically.

“This is something we have to do for our people,” he said, adding; “We refuse to accept the Greek Cypriot policy of isolating us from the world.”

Perhaps wisely, the Turkish Cypriot leader refrained from blaming the Greek Cypriots for a power cut half way through his marathon briefing, despite one journalist’s jibe that it came as a result of a “Greek Cypriot conspiracy”.

But he did blame them for delays in opening a planned crossing point between the two sides in Zodhia in the west of the island. He said he believed the south was dragging its feet so that the north would miss out on a chance to earn revenue from the export of citrus fruits next autumn. He expressed keenness to open other checkpoints, particularly the one in Ledra Street in central Nicosia. This, he said, he would seek to do “immediately after the opening of Zodhia”.

He also commented on legal action being taken against those living in Greek Cypriot properties in the north saying the issue should be dealt with on a political basis rather than a legal one. He warned, however, that if the Greek Cypriots insisted on dealing with the issue on a purely legal basis the Turkish Cypriot side could play the same game.
“We too have property in the south,” he said.

He insisted that attempts to prosecute people in the north only exacerbated the difficulties in efforts to solve the Cyprus problem and that such efforts were made, not so that Greek Cypriots could regain their properties, but merely to damage the economy of the north.



Well he is saying the right things and doing the right things, thats more than can be said for tassos

[Main_Source]

Thats the point...he's only SAYING the right things...he hasnt given any concessions or shown any goodwill toward GC when there were talks between RoC and 'TRNC' in Brussels.

He's all mouth.

Even Tassos has offered better concessions toward TC than Talat has offered GC.

[brother]

We will have to agree to disagree on that one source, i have read both sides stories and it all stinks to high heaven but the fact remains that tassos refuses to meet with the elected leader of the tc people, so much for goodwill huh.

[Main_Source]

He's the president of an entity that is occupaying a thrid of the country. Why is he going to meet the leader of a breakaway state RoC doesnt recognise. Thats like acknowledging 'TRNC'.

[detailer]

He's the president of an entity that is occupaying a thrid of the country. Why is he going to meet the leader of a breakaway state RoC doesnt recognise. Thats like acknowledging 'TRNC'.

He can meet him simply as the "TC leader". What is wrong with that?

[brother]

Well he can keep refusing to meet and the world will view him as it does already as the reason the cyprus problem is continueing and hence as people like VP are hoping for the eventual outcome will be partition but you keep listening to his bullshit and he will surely lead you to that partition that he pretends he does not want.

[brother]

Also may i add that as Tassos claims he represents all of cyprus then he is in effect talking out of his arse when he refuses to meet the elected leader of the tc, you cannot claim to represent the gc aswell as tc then refuse to meet their elected leader.

[Piratis]

Talat said the north’s change of policy “from separatist to unionist” had come about as a reaction to promises by the international community that such a shift would bring the community closer to EU membership.

So Talat doesn't want a separate part of the island for the TCs, a separate government, the separation of people based on their race, separate flag, separate anthem, separate voting etc? Or maybe he does want these, and "unionist" is just another pretty word he choose to use just for public relations reasons?
Oh I forgot, there is one thing that is about union that he wants, the name "United Cyprus"

In any case what he wants it is clear from the rest of his sentence:

bring the community closer to EU membership

Isn't it countries that get EU membership? Talat wants a separate state to be an EU member and be as united with Greek Cypriots as the Estonians or the Irish are.

[brother]

Its better than the separation that tassos is trying to achieve in a covert sort of way that is only fooling the gc.

[Piratis]

Its better than the separation that tassos is trying to achieve in a covert sort of way that is only fooling the gc.

Tassos doens't want any of the separate things that Talat wants. He, like most GCs, accepted many of them as a compromise, however Talad and most of the Turkish leadership want everything separate, they want a disguised partition, and this is why no progress can be made.

However there is a shift in the Turkish policy. This shift is from "standard" partition to disguised partition. This shift was done for 2 reasons:

1) They failed to legalize standard partition and now with Turkey wanting to enter the EU this illegal matter has to be closed.

2) Most TCs they want EU along with partition, something that the Denctash kind of partition would not achieve, while the Talad kind of partition would.