Turkey trying to scupper terms for new talks, spokesman says

President to receive report Monday on recourse to UN over Varosha

Turkey is attempting to scupper any chance of negotiations being resumed, the government said on Sunday.

Spokesman Prodromos Prodromou said Ankara was trying to prevent an agreement between the leaders of the two sides on terms of reference that would see talks resume under UN auspices.

He was responding to comments by Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu in an interview published on Sunday in Kathimerini where he repeated comments he made in Cyprus during his visit to the north last Monday as regards the negotiations and the fenced-off town of Varosha.

In the interview, Cavusoglu called for an informal five-party meeting with the two sides and the guarantor powers to define what will be negotiated, create a framework, and go to negotiations “focused on outcome”.

He also repeated that Varosha would be opened. “The plan for the city will be made public after the necessary processes are done,” he said. Cavusoglu had visited Varosha last Monday with Turkish Cypriot ‘foreign minister’ Kudret Ozersay.

The Turkish foreign minister also said Ankara would continue drilling in and around Cyprus “until a common solution to the issue is found”.

Prodromou responded saying: “Obviously Turkey is intervening at the moment and to prevent the agreement between the President of the Republic and the Turkish Cypriot leader which appeared to be possible, to conclude the terms of reference.”

UN envoy Jane Holl Lute spent six days earlier this month shuttling between the two leaders to agree on the terms. A deal appeared to be close until an obstacle arose from the Turkish side as regards the inclusion of political equality for the Turkish Cypriots, following a phone call between Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci and Ankara. From then on and despite three more rounds of meetings with Lute, the terms could not be agreed.

Cavusoglu, during his visit, said political equality would have to be agreed in advance before any new talks could come about.

“Turkey has been trying to prevent the resumption of negotiations because it wants to avoid and disable the Guterres framework and in particular the provisions of the framework and the parameters for the abolition of guarantees and the withdrawal of the occupying army,” said Prodromou.

“In the interim, it raises the claim for the abolition of the sovereignty of the Republic of Cyprus on the pretext of natural gas while using as blackmail the threat of colonisation of the city of Famagusta, which it has held captive and hostage for 45 years in a state of desolation,” he added.

Prodromou said that in the words of President Nicos Anastasiades on Saturday night, “we will use all the diplomatic and political mean at our disposal to prevent the colonisation of Varosha and claim the continuation of the UN Secretary-General’s initiative to relaunch negotiations. ”

Foreign Minister Nicos Christodoulides also weighed in on Sunday saying a report on possible options and recourse to the UN, would be submitted to the president on Monday. The report contained the views of the five permanent members of the Security Council. “The message to Mr Cavusoglu will be clear,” Christodoulides said.

“Whatever Mr Cavusoglu says from time to time, because he thinks that with a statement or an interview he will create problems, or because he wants to send messages to the Turkish Cypriots, or because he wants to promote some of Turkey’s positions, the answer is that Turkey is asked to give only one; relaunch talks from where they stopped in Crans-Montana on the basis of the terms of reference, for which there was a meeting between the two leaders on August 9.”

“Any other position on the part of Turkey should be submitted to the UN Secretary-General.”

On Varosha, he said no one could dispute the ownership of the fenced-off area “no matter how much Mr Ozersay proceeds and no matter what actions are taken by Turkey”.

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