Cyprus President Anastasiades has sent a clear message that he would not yield to advice or suggestions to return to “a dialogue of the deaf”, referring to the UN-led negotiations with the Turkish Cypriot side, InCyprus reports.
Speaking on Sunday, Oct 19, Anastasiades said “I would have been unworthy of the people’s mandate if I had remained at the negotiating table under threat and new faits accomplis” which Ankara has created.
He said that regional developments “may have prevented some circles from taking more decisive measures against Turkey, even if they fully recognize that Nicosia’s decision to suspend its participation in the ongoing dialogue is justified.”
Turkey has issued a NAVTEX (Navigational Telex), a notice to mariners advising that it was reserving areas south of Cyprus, part of which extends into the Republic’s exclusive economic zone where foreign oil companies are drilling, for seismic surveys from Oct 20 to Dec 30.
Anastasiades at that time announced decision to suspend his participation in the UN-led negotiations which aim to reunify the island under a federal roof.
“The unacceptable provocation by Turkey, five days before the beginning of the substantive dialogue on the Cyprus problem, not only violates international law in a flagrant way but also proves wrong all those who believed in Turkey’s assurances about a substantial contribution to the solution of the problem,” he said, according to InCyprus.
As regards natural resources in Cyprus’ Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), Anastasiades said that “some third parties from foreign countries advise us that it is possible, through various actions, for the natural wealth to be determined now with the participation of the Turkish Cypriots. I want to point out to them that nothing of the sort will ever be accepted. Such a thing will never be accepted.”
“What we have said and we repeat and we will keep saying because it is self-evident, is that the natural wealth belongs to the state and it is therefore also an incentive for Turkey and the Turkish Cypriots. Let there be at last a solution and through the solution the Turkish Cypriots will also of course benefit and will certainly also enjoy the benefits,” he noted.
Anastasiades said that “unfortunately, Turkey’s recent actions do not serve the purpose of confidence building measures or the creation of a constructive environment which would facilitate the process of the talks. To the contrary, they create mistrust and raise serious doubts within the Greek Cypriot community with regard to Ankara’s true intentions of Turkey.”
Adopting confidence building measures would be a tangible proof of the commitment of the leadership of both communities, and in particular of Turkey, for the support of the efforts by civil society to build understanding, trust and good will, acting in this way as a catalyst for the negotiating process, he said.
“I want to make clear that if there is a side that is interested in the earliest possible solution of the Cyprus problem, this is neither Turkey nor the Turkish Cypriot leadership that have hindered the solution for 40 years through their intransigence. It is neither Turkey nor the Turkish Cypriots who were forced to abandon their ancestral homes. It is the Greek Cypriots who are paying the price,” he added.
Anastasiades assured that he will never tire of working and reiterated “our desire for a solution to be found at the earliest possible, a solution that will address our expectations and will not ignore the rights of the Turkish Cypriots either.”