Turkey slams Greek Cyprus’ EU meet veto

Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu has condemned Greek Cyprus for reportedly blocking an invitation to Turkey to attend tomorrow’s meeting of EU foreign ministers on Syria.

“They can impose a veto bureaucratically but they cannot veto Turkey’s historic role in the region. It’s up to the EU to decide,” Davutoğlu said on the Kanal 24 channel yesterday.

The European Union wants to include Turkey in the key meeting.

Turkey is ready to respond to any calls for consultations, he said.

Noting that his French counterpart invited Turkey to the foreign ministers’ meeting on the ongoing unrest in Syria, Davutoğlu said the discussions in the EU on Turkey’s participation were still ongoing.

“It is obvious that countries that have a strategic vision want to move positively forward in their relations with Turkey,” he said.

Davutoğlu also said Turkey’s sanctions against Syria were ready and would be announced after a meeting with President Abdullah Gül and Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.

Sanctions against Syria will not involve the issue of water and will not affect the daily lives of ordinary Syrians, he said.

As part of its preparation for the unilateral sanctions against Syria, Ankara monitored the Arab countries’ implementation of the list of sanctions that the Arab League declared over the weekend, the minister said.

When asked if Turkey would form a buffer zone inside the Syrian border, Davutoğlu said the issue was not on Turkey’s agenda at the moment, but added that officials had not ruled out the possibility if necessary. “We will move forward with the international community based on humanitarian needs.”

Turkey is against a military intervention in Syria but is ready for any scenario, the minister said.