EU Council draft resolutions on Cyprob accepted

Conclusions in draft resolution of the EU Council on the Cyprus problem and EU-Turkey relations were accepted without changes on Friday, a day after they circulated.

On Thursday, President Nikos Christodoulides expressed satisfaction by the paragraph about the Cyprus problem in the draft conclusions of the European Council.

In relation to his proposal for the appointment of an EU envoy for the Cyprus issue, he noted that because of this proposal there is a reference in the draft to EU involvement in all stages of the process.

The paragraph on the Cyprus issue is a continuation of the effort for a strengthened role of the EU in the Cyprus issue, and the proposal of the government which includes the appointment of a political figure as a special envoy of the EU to promote the resumption of talks in coordination with the UN and to support during of the negotiation if it starts again.

The statement on Cyprus says that the European Council remains fully committed to a comprehensive settlement of the Cyprus problem, within the framework of the United Nations, in a manner consistent with the relevant UNSC resolutions and in accordance with the principles on which the EU is based and the acquis.

The paragraph says: “The European Union calls for the swift resumption of negotiations and stands ready to play an active role in supporting all stages of the UN-led negotiation process with all appropriate means at its disposal.”

Meanwhile, a paragraph on EU-Turkey relations says the council expects the EU foreign affairs chief and commission to submit a report on the state of relations between the two with a view of moving forward in a strategic and future-oriented manner.

Commenting on Thursday, the president said that the member states “see the added value of the appointment of an individual” on the Cyprus issue, and “for this reason there is also in the conclusions the reference that the European Union is ready to be involved in all stages of the effort, and now in the breaking of the impasse and the resumption of talks.”

Christodoulides also noted that the lunch of the leaders with the Secretary General of Nato, Jens Stoltenberg, is of particular importance, since in the bilateral meetings with Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan that will take place on the sidelines of the Nato Summit in Vilnius in July, it is expected that not only the issue of the integration of Sweden, but also the Cyprus issue will be discussed.

Earlier this month, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz took a swipe at both sides in Cyprus for the lack of movement after meeting Christodoulides, saying that for talks to gain momentum it requires political courage “from both sides” and questioned whether there was “enough will from both sides”.

As if to reinforce this, Germany’s ambassador to Cyprus Anke Schlimm, in an interview with Politis on Sunday said “willingness to compromise” was important to move forward.

She was clear that Germany remains committed to supporting a resolution of the Cyprus issue through talks under the auspices of the UN.