The Socialists in the European Parliament have expressed their support to the Direct Trade Regulation which was presented to the European Parliament and member countries by the European Commission for approval. The Socialists is the second largest political group within the European Parliament.
The Head of the Socialists Group Martin Schulz said that the implementation of the Regulation will increase the competitiveness of the North Cyprus economy, narrow the prosperity gap between the two communities in Cyprus and “make the solution of the Cyprus problem easier” by integrating the North Cyprus economy into the EU.
Mr Schulz also pledged the Socialists Group’s support for the immediate approval of the Regulation by the European Parliament.
‘We believe that the approval of the Regulation will facilitate the comprehensive negotiations being carried out by the two leaders in Cyprus’ he added.
The Direct Trade Regulation was prepared by the European Commission on the 7th of July 2004 in line with its promises to lift the isolation on the TRNC, which approved the Annan Plan while it was rejected by the Greek Cypriot Side.
But, the Greek Cypriot Administration has prevented the implementation of the Regulation for years as its approval needed the unanimous support of all member states before the Lisbon Treaty was put into practice.