Dinner goes down well

“We have had a very good evening. The dinner went very well,” the UN Secretary General’s Special Advisor for Cyprus Alexander Downer said on Thursday after the dinner the UN hosted for the leaders of the two communities.

“The leaders of the two communities are pleased at this opportunity to meet, and are committed to the peace process which aims to find a solution acceptable to both sides”, he said.

The UN official did not take questions.

The soiree was shrouded in controversy from the outset, with the government at pains to drive home the message that it was nothing more than a social event and that the two leaders would not be talking shop, the Cyprus Mail reports.

Commentators speculated that Anastasiades’ aggressive posture and his insistence that the dinner should not turn political, was designed to placate his hawkish coalition partners DIKO who have long labeled Downer a persona non grata and have been calling for his replacement.

The opposition has been sounding the alarm, warning that international players are pushing for a political settlement now that Cyprus finds itself in a weak spot due to the financial crisis. They have been turning up the heat on the President not to commit to any process or a timeframe for talks at this juncture.

The Cyprus Mail says that while the dinner may have played out as an informal affair, not all observers are convinced that nothing is afoot.

Earlier on Thursday, Eric Rubin, US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian affairs, held a one-hour meeting with President Anastasiades at the Presidential Palace. Rubin later held a working lunch with Foreign Minister Ioannis Kasoulides.

CyBC, citing diplomatic sources, said Rubin reiterated to Anastasiades the US government’s continuing interest in the Cyprus peace process and Washington’s readiness to assist.

Turkish Cypriot daily Kibris reports that Rubin also met with the Turkish Cypriot leader Dervis Eroglu and the former Turkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat.

Meanwhile, Turkey’s EU Affairs Minister, Egemen Bagis, was yesterday quoted by Turkish Cypriot media as saying that Ankara is ready to “say yes” to any solution agreed by the two sides on the island.

“The main thing is that the two sides find common ground. As far as we are concerned, there is only one prerequisite: whatever the solution, it must be based on political equality,” he said.

“Let us not be forced, after withdrawing our troops from the island, to send them back. The island’s security lies in political equality.”

Referring to the 2004 Annan plan, he said the Greek Cypriots by voting no were saying yes to Turkish troops remaining on the island. “If they had accept the plan, then there would be no troops left on the island, not only Turkish but Greek troops too”, Bagis added.

We see as an opportunity that the only Greek Cypriot politician, who said ‘yes’ to the Annan plan, has been elected President. However, the poor man has been caught in such a financial crisis, that he can see neither the Turkish Cypriot side nor the EU. His problem is first to save the banks. We are aware that we should give him some time.”

Noting that a comprehensive solution is not very difficult, Bagis said: “Let’s negotiate the Annan plan again. Let’s put on the table the issues from the Annan plan that make us and them uneasy.”

“The solution of the Cyprus problem would mean that the biggest obstacle for Turkey’s EU process would be lifted”, he said.

Bagis also expressed his concern at the political turmoil in the north where a motion of no confidence was issued against the government resulting in a decision to hold early elections on 28 July this year instead of April 2014.