Alexis Tsipras met with leaders of Edek and Akel

Momentum is building up for Greece-Turkey relations and the Cyprus issue, Syriza head Alexis Tsipras said on Thursday during a visit to Cyprus.

Tsipras was in the country to attend an event organised by Lefkara municipality in the memory of Vassos Lyssarides, also meeting the leaders of Edek and Akel, as well as former presidential candidate Andreas Mavroyiannis.

In the evening he was also scheduled to meet president-elect Nikos Christodoulides.

Around noon he met Edek leader Marinos Sizopoulos, who said he considers their meeting “very important, because it is precisely a continuation of a timeless relationship and friendship, which we have both on a personal and party level, and this significant”.

According to a statement from Edek, Sizopoulos and Tsipras discussed developments in post-elections Cyprus, the role of Europe and the European Socialists, but also the joint actions to be undertaken to prevent the construction of a nuclear power plant in Akkuyu.

Earlier, Tsipras had a meeting with Andreas Mavroyiannis, after which no statements were made.

According to state broadcaster Cybc, Tsipras congratulated Mavroyiannis on his presidential campaign, and the two spoke about the course of negotiations and efforts for the establishing of a just and viable solution for the Cyprus issue.

They also exchanged views on developments in the wider Eastern Mediterranean region.

The Syriza leader then attended a lunch hosted by Akel.

Tsipras called Akel a historic party and point of reference for the region, telling leader Stephanos Stephanou that much like his own party, Syriza is the opposition and will continue to fight for Cyprus.

“This period is full of developments, problems and impasses to which the Left is called upon to give convincing answers,” Stephanou said, adding that the Left declares itself present before the small and large struggles of the people.

“For a better world and a better society, for there to be peace in our long-suffering region and for cooperation between countries and peoples,” he said.

The Akel leader said that with the end of the election procedures in sight, a new president and new government in view, there are still issues that need to be faced.

He assured that Akel, as an opposition party, will continue with assertiveness, responsibility and patriotism to fight the good fight, for the good of the country and its people, also wishing that Syriza’s efforts will make a difference in Greece.

Tsipras commented that even though the candidate backed by Akel did not manage to win the presidential election, the result was a very important surprise that primarily proves one thing, “that the ballot box is what shows the real correlations and not the opinion polls”.

It also demonstrates that Akel, making wise choices, has long fought steadfastly for the interests of the Cypriot people, and for social justice, he added.

“The new government and the new president will indeed have to face important challenges just like all of us,” he said, in this period of great geopolitical instability and a cold war-like climate, with the war in Ukraine about to end, and with open challenges regarding the Greek-Turkish disputes and the Cyprus issue.

Syriza has fought battles both as the government and the opposition for a solution to the Cyprus issue, he said, assuring that the party would continue to fight for the good of the Cypriot people, “who are entitled after so many years to another perspective on their lives”.

The Syriza leader said that momentum is building concerning Greek-Turkish relations, highlighting the recent earthquake that devastated regions of Turkey as a catalyst for changing the climate between the two nations, which nevertheless have little to do with the division.

“There is a prospect of changing the agenda for the resolution of the Greek-Turkish disputes, on the basis of international law, with clear red lines, but with a perspective of resolving the disputes at the Hague, and also for the resumption of talks on the Cyprus issue from where we left them in Crans Montana, at the base of the Guterres framework,” he said.

“We should all strive in this direction and of course strive every day in the small and large struggles for justice, for the mitigation of inequalities because this is the role of the Left”.

In the afternoon he was expected to meet with president-elect Nikos Christodoulides, and later on, at 7pm, he was to speak a memorial event for Vassos Lyssarides in Lefkara, which will see the central square after the late politician.

During his meeting with Sizopoulos, Tsipras said he was honoured to speak at an event honouring a national and international personality.