The goal remains the convening of an international conference at which the resumption of negotiations will be announced, on the basis of the agreed framework set out in UN resolutions, Diko President Nikolas Papadopoulos said on Wednesday after the meeting of the National Council. Papadopoulos said efforts are continuing without underestimating the difficulties, adding that the biggest challenge "has a name, and it is called Turkey." He said Ankara continues to insist on shifting the basis of negotiations towards a two-state solution, which the Greek Cypriot side cannot accept under any circumstances. Turkish intransigence, however, cannot lead to efforts being abandoned, he stressed. On the contrary, the Greek Cypriot side must continue to act constructively and to put forward suggestions and proposals that expose the other side. With the support and cooperation of the European Union, he added, the only road ahead is for the pressure that can be exerted on Turkey through EU-Turkey relations to lead to the desired goal of resuming negotiations.
The question of confidence-building measures
Asked whether confidence-building measures are a precondition for launching a process on the Cyprus problem, with reference also to the written statement issued by UN envoy María Ángela Holguín after her contacts in New York, Papadopoulos said the position of the Greek Cypriot side is that confidence-building measures are not a precondition for convening an international conference. He noted that this was not the position expressed by the UN Secretary-General himself during his visit to Cyprus either. Papadopoulos said everyone must contribute to preparing the ground so that the conditions for an international conference can be created. He explained that the insistence on an international conference stems from the fact that the Cyprus problem concerns not only the two leaders and the two communities, but also Turkey, security issues, the future of the occupation army and the return of territory. The occupying power, he said, naturally cannot be absent from that discussion.
Source: CNA
