Turkish main opposition warns Greek Cyprus over talks

NICOSIA - Anatolia News Agency

CHP leader Kılıçdaroğlu (L) meets with Turkish Cyprus leader Eroğlu. AA photo

Turkey’s main opposition leader yesterday warned Greek Cyprus not to use its economic crisis as an excuse for the postponement of reunification talks.

Republican Peoples’ Party (CHP) leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu said he was against Greek Cyprus’s quest to postpone negotiations due to the economic crisis.

“We are against because we seek negotiations to be held independently of the economic crisis and to end the process with a healthy negotiation,” Kılıçdaroğlu said, after meeting with top Turkish Cypriot officials in Nicosia.

The EU bailout package triggered widespread discontent on the island, as numerous business failures and job losses are feared. Kılıçdaroğlu also criticized the pace of the negotiations and urged the Turkish government to make more efforts on resolving the issue.

For his part, Turkish Cyprus President Derviş Eroğlu backed Kılıçdaroğlu, saying that they acted in a manner to start negotiations at once.

Underlining that the crisis Greek Cyprus is struggling with might continue for years, Eroğlu stressed that they had expressed the Turkish side’s willingness to start the negotiations to the Greek leader Nicos Anastasiades on the phone as well as through the United Nations.

“But as far as I’ve seen Greek Cyprus is more likely to postpone the negotiations. It is not easy to say for now if talks will start in October. It is not possible to reach an agreement on Cyprus with only one side’s willingness,” he said.