Greek Cypriot leader ‘ready to resume talks today’
NEW YORK
Greek Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides has expressed his country’s readiness to immediately restart reunification negotiations for the divided island, calling on Türkiye to join in these efforts.
"We cannot change geography. It is an opportunity, not a curse. Türkiye and Cyprus will always remain neighbors," he remarked during a speech at the United Nations General Assembly in New York on Sept. 25.
“I adamantly believe we can carve a new path, one of peace, cooperation and collaboration.”
“I am committed and I am ready to sit at the negotiating table today. Not tomorrow. Today,” Christodoulides expressed.
Cyprus has been divided since 1974 when Türkiye, as a guarantor power, prompted by a coup aimed at Greece's annexation of the island, launched a military intervention dubbed the Cyprus Peace Operation to protect Turkish Cypriots from persecution and violence. As a result, the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus was founded on Nov. 15, 1983.
Reunification talks collapsed in mid-2017 and have been at a stalemate since. Greek Cypriots say the only framework available is that defined by U.N. resolutions calling for reunification under a bizonal, bicommunal federation.
Turkish Cypriot President Ersin Tatar has expressed support for a two-state deal where its sovereignty is recognized.
On Sept. 24, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan told U.N. General Assembly that the federation model "has now completely lost its validity," emphasizing the presence of "two distinct states and two distinct peoples" on the island.
He argued that the "sovereign equality and equal international standing of the Turkish Cypriots" must be recognized as inherent rights, and that the current isolation should be lifted. Turkish Cyprus is only recognized by Türkiye.
Erdoğan also suggested to U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres that a meeting between the parties, under U.N. supervision, to explore alternatives to a federation could be beneficial.
