Greek Cyprus opposition leader blames Turkish side for deadlock

ISTANBUL

Turkish Cypriot President Derviş Eroğlu’s failure to accept a single and indivisible sovereignty was responsible for preventing the commencement of much-anticipated talks, Andros Kyprianou said. AA Photo

The president of Turkish Cyprus is to blame for a failure to reach an agreement on a joint statement that would resume peace talks on the divided island, according to the leader Greek Cyprus’ main opposition.

Turkish Cypriot President Derviş Eroğlu’s focus on two states and his failure to accept a single and indivisible sovereignty was responsible for preventing the commencement of much-anticipated talks, according to Andros Kyprianou, the general-secretary of Akel.

The way out of the deadlock is for both sides to respect earlier agreements reached between the former leaders of the two communities in 2008, Kyprianou told a group of journalists and academics in a roundtable discussion organized by İstanbul’s Kültür University yesterday.

The agreement reached in principle by Demetris Christofias and Mehmet Ali Talat, the former leaders of the two communities, was on a single sovereignty and citizenship, said Kyprianou, adding that in the ensuing talks, significant convergences were achieved on key issues that were recorded by U.N. special envoy Alexander Downer between 2008 and 2012.

Kyprianou also criticized Greek Cyprus’ current president, Nicos Anastasiades, for failing to agree to continue negotiations where they had been halted.

Anastasiades wanted to improve the agreed basis, but “we opposed his approach, saying he wouldn’t achieve it,” said Kyprianou.