Cyprus rivals meet in Greentree for solution

NEW YORK - Anatolia News Agency

UN Secretary General Ban (C) poses with Greek Cypriot leader Christofias (L) and his Turkish Cypriot counterpart Eroğlu. AFP photo

Turkish Cypriots are impatient while concrete results are necessary for removing uncertainty, said a Turkish-Cypriot official as Turkish-Cypriot leader Derviş Eroğlu and Greek-Cyprus leader Demetris Christofias began the fifth tripartite meeting under U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon’s supervision in New York yesterday.

Special envoy of Eroğlu, Kudret Özersay, said yesterday the Turkish-Cyprus administration is ready to hold “give and take” negotiations at the Greentree meeting on Long Island, with the exception of some critical issues. “What is expected from us at Greentree is to negotiate the main unsolved areas such as property, citizenship and governance, with some reservations in relation to two special chapters; namely the map issue, security and the guarantor issue,” said Özersay.

The map issue is to be left to the last meeting by the agreement of both leaders, and the question of guarantors cannot be debated in the absence of guarantor countries. “Both sides of the island have to be flexible in order to achieve progress,” as only one side making an effort cannot achieve results, he said.

Ban to hold press conference

Upon arrival at Greentree, the leaders posed for journalists along with their wives. Ban’s wife Yoo Soon-taek, Eroğlu’s wife Meral Eroğlu and Hristofyas’ wife Elsie Hristofyas were also present for the photographs.

The U.N. Secretary General’s special advisor on Cyprus, Alexander Downer, is expected to hold a press conference at the end of the first day of meetings, and Ban is to hold a press conference Jan. 25 about the discussions at the U.N. headquarters. Christofias said last week that the Greek Cypriot side would not participate in an international conference on the Cyprus issue without prior agreement over the internal aspects of the problem, according to the Cyprus news agency. In statements to the media upon arrival in New York, Christofias expressed his regret relating to the lack of progress on some of the core Cyprus issues, saying this had been a condition as set by the U.N. Secretary General. “There has been no progress so far on governance, property, territory and citizenship; meaning those issues regarding Turkish settlers.”

However, Özersay criticized Christofias’ statements on a possible international conference meeting, saying neither sides would never be able to hold an international conference with this sort of attitude.