‘We are ready for negotiations to start tomorrow’

President Nikos Christodoulides said on Sunday the government is “ready for negotiations to start tomorrow”.

He was speaking at a memorial for Eoka fighter Grigoris Afxentiou, who was killed on March 3, 1957, when British forces were informed of his location and poured petrol into his hideout before lighting it.

“I will exhaust every effort to create the conditions for the resumption of negotiations, for a comprehensive resolution to the Cyprus problem, based on the agreed framework and the principles and values of the European Union,” he said.

He added, “we have to free our country from the burden of the Turkish occupation which has been going on for 50 years. We have an obligation to work with all the strength of our souls to hand a free country over to the next generation, to give our children the opportunity to live in conditions of security, prosperity, and progress.”

He did acknowledge the difficulty of the task of solving the Cyprus problem, however, saying, “we know very well the difficulties, challenges, and problems which come about as a result of the Turkish attitude.”

“The current state of affairs is not sustainable and it certainly cannot be the foundation for building a stable and secure tomorrow for us and our children,” he added.

He went on to say that Cyprus in the 20 years since its accession to the EU has become a “reliable partner” and an “active participant in the European process”.

This, he said, is combined with an “absolute commitment to reunification and the resolution of the Cyprus problem, which will enshrine basic rights and be compatible with European principles and values.”

He also spoke about Grigoris Afxentiou, saying “we owe a great debt” to him.

“With assertive realism, a methodical approach, and confidence in ourselves, in this hour of memory, we must chart our course united and strong, learning from Afxentiou and the rest of our fighters who sacrificed their lives,” he said.

“We owe it to the Eoka fighters, to those who participated in the most heroic and pure struggle in this country’s history.

“Our non-negotiable goal is liberation, the withdrawal of occupying troops and the reunification of our homeland, without guarantors or foreign ‘protectors’. This is the vision for which I will spare no efforts,” he said.