Cyprus stresses importance of EU role at Geneva talks

President Nicos Anastasiades on Friday stressed the important role the EU can play in during the informal conference on the Cyprus issue that will take place next month in Geneva.

In a teleconference convened by the President of the European Council with leaders of EU member states ahead of a summit next week, Anastasiades spoke extensively of the important role the EU has to play, as well as to the need for Turkey to adopt the same constructive stance as the Greek Cypriot side, for the resumption of the negotiation process.

The president said Turkey should avoid violating the rights of the Republic at sea, and terminating its actions in the fenced off area of Varosha in Famagusta, which are in violation of the relevant UN Security Council resolutions.

He also pointed out that any discussion on a positive agenda between the EU and Turkey should depend on the country’s behaviour in various aspects, including the Cyprus problem.

Anastasiades also highlighted the need for Turkey to fully comply with its obligations on migration, as he reiterated the disproportionate burden placed on Cyprus by migration flows, as a front-line EU Member State.

The teleconference was also attended by Prime Minister of Denmark Mette Frederiksen, Prime Minister of Latvia Krišjānis Kariņš, Primer Minister of Slovakia Igor Matovič and Prime Minister of Slovenia Janez Janša.

During the discussion, the heads of state presented their positions and exchanged views on all issues on the agenda of the forthcoming European Council which include the situation in the Eastern Mediterranean region, European efforts for a collective response to the pandemic, especially as regards the EU vaccination strategy and the adoption of the digital green pass, issues relating to the Single Market, Industrial Policy, Digital Transformation and the Economy, and  the EU-Russia relations.

Meanwhile, in an op-ed published in Euractiv on Friday, Foreign Minister Nicos Christodoulides said the EU “needs to take its seat at the table” and establish a clear path to resolution and peace on its own soil.

“It is critical to understand that the EU is an internal actor, and as such the EU must have a seat at the negotiating table this time as well,” he said.

“Given Cyprus’s status as an EU member state, it should be self-explanatory why that is the case, and yet there is resistance by some of the stakeholders, Turkey and others”.

Christodoulides said that Cyprus, in its entirety, joined the EU in 2004, with the acquis temporarily suspended in the north of the island pending reunification. “At that moment the Cyprus problem became a European problem,” he said.

“Not only can this factor not be ignored, but rather it should be embraced and leveraged at the negotiating table as an instrument for all sides.”

He said Cyprus was an EU member state and would remain an EU member state following reunification. As such a solution to the Cyprus problem must comply with the EU acquis, values, and principles because reunited Cyprus must be a viable, functional member state of the EU.

“The EU must have a seat at the negotiating table under UN auspices, also because it proved in the previous round of negotiations that its role is valuable in bridging gaps, and doing so in a way that is compliant with EU law and that ensures functionality,” Christodoulides added.

The new effort by the UNSG, he said, coincided with Turkey’s declared wish to mend relations with the EU, which were shaken as a result of Turkey’s illegal activities and policy of provocation against member states of the EU, including Cyprus, as well as its role regionally where it is not acting as a partner to the EU, actively undermining EU interests.

If Turkey’s rhetoric on its wish to mend relations with the EU was to be taken seriously, it would be contradictory for Ankara to insist on its position not to have the EU participating in the negotiations under UN auspices. “It is an irrefutable fact that EU-Turkey relations are inextricably linked to the Cyprus problem,” Christodoulides said.