Christos Stylianides says ex-president lied over Crans-Montana comments

A former cadre of the Disy party on Tuesday accused ex-president Nicos Anastasiades of lying, in an ongoing spat between the two that also dragged in the former lead negotiator on the Cyprus issue.

On social media, Christos Stylianides said the former president is launching “an unethical personal attack” against him and spreading “fiction”.

The row concerns the UN-sponsored peace talks on Cyprus taking place in the summer of 2017 at Crans-Montana in the Swiss Alps. The process was brought to a halt after negotiations broke down.

Anastasiades earlier had accused Stylianides of “having adopted the Turkish positions” in the aftermath of the Crans-Montana talks.

The ex-president said Stylianides – at the time the European Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Management – had disagreed with Federica Mogherini, then the EU’s foreign policy chief.

Anastasiades was referring to Mogherini’s briefing to the College of Commissioners of the EU concerning the talks in Switzerland.

“Mr Nicos Anastasiades presented a scenario about my supposed disagreement with Federica Mogherini at the College of Commissioners, where the results of Crans-Montana were discussed,” Stylianides posted.

“He lied that I supposedly adopted the Turkish positions. And he invoked Mr [Andreas] Mavroyuannis as a witness.”

Stylianides went on: “I was there. I know what was said. The minutes [of the meeting] are available and they can confirm my account. This is confabulation [on Anastasiades’ part]. It is an unethical personal attack.”

Andreas Mavroyiannis was the lead negotiator for the Greek Cypriot side at Crans-Montana.

According to Stylianides, Mavroyiannis has since backed him up by refuting Anastasiades.

“There is only one truth, undeniable. There was no disagreement whatsoever between myself and Ms Mogherini.”

Moreover, Stylianides claimed, Mavroyiannis’ own account shows that Anastasiades “told many other lies, confusing dates and events”.

Hitting back at Anastasiades, he wrote: “His sole purpose is to escape his own huge responsibility relating to the Cyprus issue, but also the fact that he dragged Cyprus into total disrepute due to corruption.”

Signing off, the former EU commissioner said: “We continue on the path of truth and integrity.”

A former Anastasiades ally, Stylianides had served as government spokesman from 2013 to 2014 during the first Anastasiades administration.

The quarrel reflects on a still-simmering bitter dispute over what really went on in Switzerland and who was to blame for the collapse of the peace talks.

Anastasiades’ critics accuse him of torpedoing the negotiations. The ex-president rejects that categorically, placing all the blame on the Turkish side.

What Mogherini had apparently told the College of Commissioners was that neither side was to blame. But she did add that Mevlut Cavusoglu, then Turkey’s foreign minister, had insisted on two points which led to the final breakdown of the talks.

At least this was the account given by Mavroyiannis.

In a statement on Tuesday, Mavroyiannis partly backed up Stylianides’ version of events. He also denied that he ever said that Stylianides had disagreed with Mogherini at the College of Commissioners – as claimed by Anastasiades.

Anastasiades was therefore lying about what Mavroyiannis himself said.

However, Mavroyiannis added a twist to the story. According to him, whereas Stylianides did not challenge Mogherini at the College of Commissioners, he did so subsequently.

After the meeting of the College, Stylianides pointed out to Mogherini that she had not understood what took place at Crans-Montana, and also that Anastasiades was responsible for the deadlock.

Moreover, when Mavroyiannis confronted Stylianides about the latter’s exchange with Mogherini, Stylianides did not deny saying those things to her.

In other words, Mavroyiannis confirmed that Stylianides had blamed Anastasiades rather than the Turkish side. But Anastasiades had mixed up the dates.