Cyprus-Forum.com

[brother]

Greek Cypriot/Greek high risk scenario
Turkish Daily News: 12/5/2004

By Gunduz Aktan

TDN- With Greek Cypriots rejecting the Annan plan and Greece deciding not to take the Aegean problems to The Hague, they believed they could extract more from Turkey by using their veto right.

The Annan plan actually favored the Greek Cypriots. Former Greek Prime Minister Constantine Mitsotakis even went so far as telling the press that the plan would result in the Greek Cypriots dominating the island within 10 to 15 years.

Greek Cypriot leader Tassos Papadopoulos and the Progressive Party of the Working People (AKEL), who joined him 15 days before the referendum, believed they could utilize their veto right in dominating the entire island much earlier. In other words, they aimed to empty the island of Turkish troops immediately, a higher number of settlers from Anatolia returning to Turkey and eliminating the weak bi-zonality noted in the plan in order to turn the Turks into a minority.

In order for them to reach their objectives, Turkey will have to recognize the Greek Cypriots as the “Republic of Cyprus” some time during the negotiation process. As they openly admit, they will later call for the removal of Turkish troops and settlers. They will then forcefully reclaim their properties in the north. As panic reigns over the defenseless Turks, the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (KKTC) will be toppled by a “people’s movement,” similar to the ones that took place in Serbia, Georgia or Ukraine.

Still, they needed to ensure that the isolation and embargoes on the KKTC would continue, which they seem to have secured.

As Turkey supported the Annan plan, it believed once the Copenhagen Criteria was fulfilled, the Cyprus issue would no longer be an obstacle to membership. With the Greek Cypriots rejecting the Annan plan and demanding to be recognized, openly showed their intention to dominate the entire island. The Turkish government and liberal groups, who sincerely supported the Annan plan, have started to think that those who did not trust the Greek Cypriots were right after all.

More importantly, despite the fact that Turkey fulfilled all its “obligations,” the uncertainty over its membership is increasing. In the European Union, people have started to say that Turkey, because of its religion, culture, language and location, which are impossible to change, is not part of the European identity. The uncertainty is amplified with proposals like an open-ended negotiation, privileged partnership, the possibility of suspending the negotiations and referendums in member countries to approve our accession treaty, which aim at eliminating the objections.

Under these conditions, abandoning the Turkish Cypriots to an EU, where Turkey is not a member, by accepting the Greek Cypriot demands is both a legal and political impossibility.

It would be good for Greek Cypriots to recognize these facts. Their unilateral approach to the resolution of the Cyprus problem cannot be accepted by any Turkish government. Giving another chance to Greek Cypriots by holding a second referendum for the Annan plan is something only the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) can accept. No one can ignore the possibility that a new Turkish government may be formed after the 2006 national elections and it will object to the Annan plan. If Turkey does not become an EU member, the unification of Cyprus will only be a dream. Then, the hands that applauded Papadopoulos’ “ohi,” will be trying to strangle him.

If Turkey does not become an EU member, it will no longer feel the need to go to The Hague to resolve the Aegean disputes. If Turkey acts honorably and rejects the veto blackmail, the only way to resolve the issue for Greece would be no more.

We saw many dogfights in the Aegean. For an individual who lived the 1987 and the 1996 crisis, I know how close we were to disaster. For Greece, which was an EU member, it was even harder. If a third crisis erupts, we may not escape so lightly.

There have always been people in the EU, who wanted to keep the Cyprus and Aegean issues alive. These individuals believed that their lack of political will on the issue of our membership could be hidden behind these problems. This is a dangerous game. In addition, the game is close to losing all its meaning.

At a time when so much confusion surrounds its membership and the trust felt towards both Greek Cyprus/Greece and the EU is deteriorating, Turkey cannot afford a resolution of the Cyprus issue. Cyprus can only be resolved after we become a member and in accordance with the Annan plan.

In other words, we are back to the beginning.

[pantelis]

It will be more appropriate if they rename the Annan Plan to the "Gul Plan". Annan will be "dead and buried" soon!

http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl? ... 03/1451205

[pantelis]

Lord David Hannay, the British UN Ambassador and a member of the high-level panel on UN reform that reported last week, denounced those calling for Mr Annan’s head as a “lynch mob”.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0, ... 20,00.html

What if we discover, next year, that Annan was "blackmailed" over the Iraqi Oil for Food scandal, to finalize the Cyprus "solution plan" in a not so impartial UN way?

[brother]

That would make a good program, 'conspiracie theories by pantellis' nothing is impossible but that is far fetched in my opinion.