A call to the Turkish Cypriot leader ahead of the October 13 meeting with the President of the Republic: to make the necessary substantive progress so that we can jointly contribute to the UN Secretary-General’s efforts to restart the process, the Government Spokesperson stated.
Speaking to reporters after the briefing for the extra-parliamentary parties EDEK, DIPA, Ecologists on the Cyprus Issue by the President of the Republic, and when asked whether they had received a response from Mr. Erhurman regarding the 19-point proposal, Mr. Letympiotis said they had not. “We hope there will be a thorough discussion on Tuesday,” he said, “regarding these 19 points and more.” “A thorough discussion regarding the next steps,” he said, noting that everyone wants to see the next steps taken and to make the most of the time remaining for the current UN Secretary-General. “If we are serious about this, there must be tangible steps forward in the immediate future.”
ΣΧΕΤΙΚΑ ΑΡΘΡΑ
Rubio’s messages from Athens are significant, says Letympiotis
Rubio’s messages from Athens are significant, says Letympiotis
The Greek Cypriot side, he said, has accepted everything agreed upon at the previous two expanded meetings on Cyprus and has accepted the UN Secretary-General’s compromise proposal. And in order to support this effort as much as possible, he continued, the President submitted the 19 proposals.
When asked whether the port of Famagusta and Varosia constitute a new proposal, the Spokesperson said that so far they have not made public any of the 19 proposals, which pertain to the terms of reference, the methodology, and the substance, “and the three pillars set forth by the UN Secretary-General.”
When asked whether the port of Famagusta and Varosia are among the 19 points, Mr. Letymiotis said he would neither confirm nor deny this, since they have not yet been made public. “With all due respect to the Turkish Cypriot leader, who is evaluating these proposals,” he noted. Responding to another question, he said that no one had informed them that Mr. Erhurman had rejected these proposals “and I don’t think rejection without discussion is a step forward.”
If there are proposals from the other side as well, he said, the President is willing to discuss them, as he has done in the past. “There are issues that we have publicly stated we accept. I hope the other side will accept them as well.” They hope, he said, that Tuesday’s discussion will be very productive and frank, recalling that the leaders’ meeting on September 19 was just that.
“And we continue to believe,” he said, “that a joint meeting in the presence of the UN Secretary-General would be extremely helpful, and such a meeting is always helpful.”
EU Letter Regarding a Festival in the Occupied Territories
When asked to comment on the reply letter that Tufan Erhurman stated he had received from the EU regarding the cancellations of festivals and a soccer camp in the occupied territories, “given the role we attribute to the EU,” Mr. Letympiotis noted that the EU’s role—both during the peace process and after a solution is reached—is “a given and of the utmost importance.” However, he declined to comment on Mr. Erhurman’s post, noting that the letter was not quoted verbatim. “Everything we do and everything we must do as a sovereign state is in the context of defending the self-evident issues pertaining to a partially occupied homeland,” he emphasized.
In response to the observation that Turkish Defense Minister Yasar Güler also used the cancellations of events in the occupied territories as an argument to criticize the Greek Cypriot side, the Spokesperson recalled the President’s 19-point proposal as an effort to create the conditions that the UN Secretary-General himself had identified as a priority. “We have demonstrated—and continue to demonstrate—over the past 52 years what our responsible stance is,” he noted, adding, “and we have demonstrated over the past 3.5 years, as well as over time, our constructive stance and our support for our Turkish Cypriot compatriots.”
Furthermore, Mr. Letympiotis said, “Any observer acting in good faith can see how strikingly paradoxical these statements are coming from Turkey, a country that has been illegally occupying 37% of the country’s territory for 52 years.” And through unacceptable and provocative statements, they refuse to recognize a sovereign EU member state. “The message we are sending is that these actions will come to an end through the resolution of the Cyprus issue,” he noted.
When asked whether they would request to be briefed on the contents of the EU’s letter or whether they would send their own letter to the EU, Konstantinos Letympiotis said that the EU is briefed regularly, on a weekly basis, on developments regarding the Cyprus issue, noting that yesterday President Christodoulides had a meeting with Ursula von der Leyen. The Republic of Cyprus, he said, is one and the same as the EU, he added. “The EU and the Republic of Cyprus are one and the same. And the actions, deeds, stances, and positions of the Republic of Cyprus are the positions of the EU,” he emphasized.
Regarding the briefing of political parties that do not participate in the National Council, Mr. Letympiotis said that it is similar to the briefing the President gave to the members of the National Council and takes place within the framework of President Christodoulides’ regular contacts with these three parties. He briefed them, he explained, on the contacts in New York, the meetings with the Turkish Cypriot leader, and the upcoming meeting next Tuesday with Mr. Erhurman.
There was a substantive exchange of views regarding the assessment of developments to date and the 19 proposals put forward by the President of the Republic. He noted that contact with these three parties will continue on a regular basis.
