ELAM disrupts Talat meeting

Around 100 members of the far right party ELAM disrupted an event on the Cyprus problem in Limassol on Wednesday night at which former Turkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat was leader, the Cyprus Mail reports.

Reports said they shouted slogans and held Greek flags outside the municipal cultural centre just before the event was scheduled to start. They then managed to enter the lobby and hurl a flare inside the hall, which landed at the feet of the American Ambassador who was attending the event. A Turkish Cypriot journalist who tried to take photos was slightly injured.

Interviewed for Sigma TV, the police chief said that he had been tired and had gone to bed as he had been all the previous night inspecting police stations. He added that the deputy chief had been notified about the possible ELAM presence at the event.

Politis reports that two men and a woman were arrested yesterday, that arrest warrants were issued for two ELAM members and that more arrests would follow. 

In the north all the Turkish Cypriot covered the incident. According the Kibris, in statements afterwards, Talat said that the culture of peace must be constructed on the island in order for the solution in Cyprus to be lasting and for such “extreme elements” to be isolated.

Talat described ELAM’s reaction as “a little extremist” and added that the police behaved very tolerantly to the protestors. Talat recalled that he had recently given a similar conference in Paphos, where there had also been protests, but the Paphos police had taken more effective measures compared to the police in Limassol.

Talat said that we must face the extreme activities and isolate them in order for the Turkish Cypriots and the Greek Cypriots to have sustainable peace in a united Cyprus. He noted that if we do not achieve this, no solution could be reached.

The paper adds that President Anastasiades called Talat and apologised to him, promising that the necessary measures will be taken. Moreover, some Greek Cypriots who spoke at the conference also apologized to the Turkish Cypriots. Anastasiades said that the insufficient police measures and the passive behaviour of the police would be investigated and that what was necessary would be done.

After the conference, the 35-member Turkish Cypriot group, which participated in the conference, returned to Nicosia escorted by police.

According to Kibris, the attack was also condemned by the Turkish Cypriot negotiator, Kudret Ozersay, who said that “with this mentality we could reach nowhere in the 21st century.” In a statement through the social media, Ozersay noted that “a very serious struggle should be

Kibris’ columnist, Hasan Hasturer, who was participating in the conference, wrote in his column that the incident should neither be overestimated or underestimated. He says that ELAM is a threat to both the Turkish Cypriots and the Greek Cypriots and points out that the behaviour of the Greek Cypriots who were in the conference room was very positive.

“No one left the room. The Turkish Cypriots and the Greek Cypriots who were there exhibited silent resistance. The conference was not left half-finished. This would be tantamount to surrendering to the fascists,” he said.

Furthermore, according to daily Kibris Postasi newspaper, Turkish Cypriot leader, Dervis Eroglu issued a written statement condemning ELAM’s behaviour and arguing that “the animosity, which some parts of the Greek Cypriot community still feel towards the Turkish Cypriots and reaches the point of violence, is regrettable and unacceptable.”

Eroglu described as “saddening and thought provoking” the fact that the police did not take the necessary measures. He described as “worrying” the fact that “such violent incidents happen especially in a period during which the negotiations reached a critical point and measures which will overcome the lack of confidence between the two sides are on the agenda”. He said that he expected the Greek Cypriot side to take the necessary measures so that such incidents are not repeated in the future.

2. Varosha could be a ‘game changer’

The return of Varosha to the Greek Cypriot side would be one of the “game-changing steps” the U.S. believes would create a new dynamic for the Cyprus talks, ambassador John Koenig said yesterday, the Cyprus Mail says.

Speaking after a meeting with ruling DISY leader Averof Neophytou, he said: “We share the view that such steps could contribute very, very positively to the conclusion and implementation of a comprehensive settlement. These are not two different things. They are part of the same effort, after 40 years, to successfully reach a settlement and implement a settlement that will reunite the island and protect the interests of all Cypriots.”

Koenig said the US speaks with the Turkish government and with the Turkish Cypriot community with regard to CBMs for Cyprus, but said he would rather not use that precise term.

“We discuss these at every opportunity with all of the parties involved,” he said.

Koenig said he had briefed Neophytou on his recent visit to Washington and on what US Secretary of State, John Kerry, had said regarding the Cyprus problem, “which is high on his priority list.”

“We see a very significant opportunity for a settlement of the Cyprus problem for a new united Cyprus with very positive perspectives in all fields,” said the ambassador.

Koenig did not comment on a statement by Turkish Cypriot leader Dervis Eroglu that Kerry would visit Cyprus next month, while Government spokesman Christos Stylianides said Nicosia had no such information.

The Cyprus Mail says that only days away from the second meeting of President Nicos Anastasiades and Eroglu next Monday, the two sides did not appear to be in sync, either on Varosha as a CBM, or on what the next stage of the talks might entail.

Eroglu and his chief negotiator, Kudret Ozersay, have been talking in recent days as if the two sides were ready to begin the give-and-take part of the process. However, Stylianides was adamant this was not the case. “This is the beginning of the road, the solution is not ready, what it takes is hard negotiation, we need to form alliances and be determined based on the EU principles,” he said.

Stylianides said that during their upcoming meeting the two leaders would assess what has been discussed so far between two chief negotiators.

Greek Cypriot negotiator Andreas Mavroyiannis is expected to press home the Varosha issue during his visit to the US.

But while the Greek Cypriot side insists that the give-and-take stage is not near, on the Turkish Cypriot side, Ozersay said conditions were ripe for that step as soon as the leaders get together, even by Monday. “If this whole process is called ‘Cyprus negotiations’ and not ‘chats’ the only remaining step is ‘give and take’,” he said.

Eroglu yesterday went as far as to say the Turkish side’s aim was to end the negotiations with simultaneous referenda before 2015. “We think that we should quickly pass into the mutual give-and-take process and end the negotiations with an agreement. The Greek Cypriot side has started acting as if it is not in a hurry but the world’s attention is focused on us,” he said.

Eroglu said that he would bring it up with Anastasiades on Monday.

The negotiators have discussed the agenda for the meeting, but Ozersay said that while they agreed on some elements, there were others they had disagreed on.

He said the Greek Cypriots wanted to bring two subchapters to the table, but Ozersay said this could be done by the two negotiators rather than the leaders.

He said there was general agreement on the law but not on elections for the federal administration, the creation of decision-making mechanism, property, security and guarantees.

The negotiators are due to meet again on April 8, 11 and 15, Ozersay said.

Earlier this week Turkish President Abdullah Gul met UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on the sidelines of the nuclear summit in the Hague and discussed Cyprus among other topics.

According to a spokesman of Ban, both agreed that it was critical to maintain the current momentum in the Cyprus talks.

“The Secretary-General encouraged Turkey to continue to engage actively and constructively in the Cyprus issue,” said the spokesman.

3. Cyprus talks could lead to reunification this time, says Downer

The process for the solution of the Cyprus problem is in good shape and there is positive momentum, outgoing Special Adviser to the UN Secretary General Alexander Downer said today, the Cyprus Mail reports.

He will be submitting an end of assignment report to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon before his term expires at the end of April.

Speaking to the press, Downer said the leaders of the two communities in Cyprus have demonstrated commitment and courage, and that there have been important achievements in the past five years.

He referred to the joint declaration that was signed on February 11, which marked the resumption of talks for a Cyprus settlement, noting that the process is in good shape and there is positive momentum.

He expressed hope that this round of talks would eventually lead to the reunification of Cyprus as a bizonal bicommunal federation, and pointed out that the leaders could achieve this and had the public urging them on.

Downer said his time in Cyprus had been memorable and intense.

Leaders to meet on 31 March

Leaders to meet on 31 March

The Greek and Turkish Cypriot leaders Anastasiades and Eroglu will meet on March 31, it was announced yesterday.

The date for the meeting was agreed between chief negotiators Andreas Mavroyiannis and Kudret Ozersay at their regular meeting earlier in the day, the Cyprus Mail reports.

This will be the second leaders’ meeting since the new round of talks began on February 11.

According to the joint declaration, which sets out the parameters for the negotiations, the leaders would meet “as often as needed”.

Mavroyiannis and Ozersay held substantive discussions on issues connected to different chapters on Tuesday, a statement said. They will meet again on Friday.

2. Nami: Solution a matter of months

The Turkish Cypriot foreign minister Ozdil Nami has said core differences in the Cyprus problem could be resolved in a “matter of months,” putting the divided Mediterranean island’s reunification within reach for the first time in four decades.

Nami who is currently on a visit to the US said in an interview with the Washington Times that Cyprus is at a threshold of tapping potential wealth from natural gas, the future export of which could wean Europe off its dependence on Russian energy.

“Of course, the precondition to achieve that scenario is first reaching a settlement to the Cyprus issue,” Mr. Nami said.

The next step, he said is to deal with property claims, territorial adjustments and security guarantees. While Mr. Nami described such issues as “difficult and challenging,” he confidently predicted that it will now be just “a matter of months, not years, to finish these talks and create a new comprehensive settlement agreement.”

“What is required now,” he added, “is the political determination to reach compromises.”

Mr. Nami estimated that it would take up to 20 years for Greek Cypriots to attain the standards of living to which they were accustomed before the economic collapse.

“In order to make that a shorter time frame, they need a jump,” he said, adding that it “can only be achieved through resolving the Cyprus issue.”

The two sides will undertake a series of confidence-building measures that include greater ties between Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot businesses; cooperation on health, the environment, protection of cultural heritage sites and fighting crime; and opening more crossing points.

The Turkish Cypriot side has tried to sweeten the pot by promising to share water and electricity that it hopes to eventually get from Turkey. “This is something which motivates our counterparts for reunification,” Mr. Nami said. “We are actually trying to make a deal much more attractive.”

“Maybe, in our own terms, this is our soft power,” he added.

Mr. Nami stressed that the Obama administration has helped the push toward reunification. Assistant Secretary of State Victoria Nuland, travelled to Cyprus ahead of the talks, and her visit was “quite instrumental in putting the final dot on the paper,” said Mr. Nami, who will meet in Washington this week with senior State Department officials and members of Congress.

“We need a catalyst to make the Israeli-Turkey-Europe link much stronger, and so when you look at the picture from this perspective all roads lead to the resolution of the Cyprus issue,” Mr. Nami said. “We are almost there. It is the project with minimal risk and greatest return. It has a huge chance of success.”

“The Ukrainian crisis reminded us of the urgent need to diversify the natural gas supply routes,” said Mr. Nami. “The resources around Cyprus are definitely an alternative means to meet the demands in Europe.”

Further, he said, the Turkish Cypriot side hopes future revenue from natural gas sales will provide much-needed money to cover heavy costs associated with reunification.

In addition to serving as an impetus for the ongoing talks, the discovery of natural gas in the eastern Mediterranean has created tensions on Cyprus — as well as between the Greek Cypriot side and the government of Turkey.

There have been concerns on the Turkish side, for instance, that the Greek Cypriot government has been trying to take sole control of the island’s gas reserves.

“Any unilateral steps taken, either by Greek Cypriots or Turkish Cypriots, without cooperating with each other is bound to lead to conflict,” Mr. Nami said.

This is why it is so important to establish a federal government overseeing both sides of the island with the authority to grant licenses and draw revenues from these resources, he said.

Mr. Nami added that the natural gas supply “is going to change the whole atmosphere in the region, create huge interdependence, great benefits, make the Western alliance much stronger in the region.”

“There is a very positive scenario there which is within our grasp,” he said. “All we need is to focus on resolving the Cyprus issue in the coming months and then this will unlock very positive developments.”

3. Nami meetings at US State Department

Turkish Cypriot daily Kibris reports that Ozdil Nami discussed the Cyprus problem at a meeting with US Deputy Secretary of State, William Burns. He told Kibris that the USA is interested in the solution process which has resumed in Cyprus and supports the solution. Nami noted that his contacts were positive and beneficial and that Burns expressed the wish for the negotiations that started in a positive climate with the joint declaration to “be concluded with constructive approaches”.

Nami said that taking steps which will bring the two communities closer to each other would be useful, but had told his interlocutors that these steps should be planned in a manner that will not disrupt the negotiations for finding a solution.

“We have put forward our expectations from the USA and the international community,” and “we drew attention to the importance of the role of the UN.”

4. Ozersay attends PRIO meeting

Turkish Cypriot daily Yeni Duzen reports that Turkish Cypriot negotiator Kudret Ozersay, said that he and Greek Cypriot negotiator Andreas Mavroyiannis discussed at a Brussels seminar how the different sectors in the economy both in the north and in the south will be affected by a cooperation between the two sides or by a comprehensive solution.

Speaking to Turkish Cypriot news agency “TAK” about the meeting that was hosted by the Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO), Ozersay said that he also had separate meetings with the Ambassadors of Sweden, Finland, Denmark and Norway to Cyprus. He added that apart from the meeting, he met separately with the German, French and the EU Ambassadors. He also discussed with officials from the British Embassy, Turkey’s Ambassadors to the EU and NATO, as well as with the officials from the EU Commission the Cyprus talks and different issues related to the Cyprus settlement.

Ozersay said that in general terms, during the meetings in Brussels, they discussed issues including derogations from the EU law as well as the EU primary law, adding that he briefed them on the Turkish Cypriot side’s views. 

Negotiators keep mum about Athens and Ankara visits

The first ever parallel visits of Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot negotiators to Ankara and Athens this week were held in a “warm” and “hospitable” environment, the Cyprus Mail reports.

The political leaderships of both communities and Turkey and Greece appear to have agreed to keep a low key on the visits, fearful of harming the peace process, raising age-old nationalist concerns over recognition issues, and undermining the momentum gained since the two leaders agreed to restart talks last month.

Greek Cypriot negotiator Andreas Mavroyiannis went to Ankara to talk directly with the Turkish Foreign Ministry’s Undersecretary Feridun Sinirlioglu on Thursday, while his Turkish Cypriot counterpart, Kudret Ozersay, met the Greek Foreign Ministry’s General Secretary, Anastassis Mitsialis, in Athens.

The two negotiators departed from either side of the buffer zone in Cyprus mid-week to fly the long way round to their respective destinations. Mavroyiannis travelled to Ankara via Athens, and Ozersay to Athens via Ankara.

The long trips were not to collect air miles, but to consult with the respective Cyprus desks of the Greek and Turkish foreign ministries, before heading on to their final destinations.

Speaking to Turkish Cypriot journalists he met at Athens airport on his return from Ankara, Mavroyiannis said that he had had a good meeting with Sinirlioglu, noting that “now it’s time to get back to work”.

According to Cyprus Mail sources, a decision was taken not to comment on the content of the meeting in Ankara, though they did acknowledge that it went well. The Greek Cypriot team received a “very warm welcome” and hospitality from their hosts.

The fact that Cypriot mobile phones do not work in Turkey perhaps helped the Greek Cypriot negotiating team keep a lid on any media buzz surrounding the visit, described by Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu as “historic”.

Cypriot Foreign Minister Ioannis Kasoulides said he awaited the return of Mavroyiannis to receive an in-depth briefing though he had already been updated by the Greek foreign ministry on the Athens side of the parallel visits.

“The two meetings took place in a good and constructive climate,” he told reporters yesterday.

Turkish daily Sabah cited Turkish diplomatic sources saying that the diagonal talks symbolised an unprecedented opportunity to reach a solution on the island

For his part, Ozersay was quoted by Turkish Cypriot daily Kibris saying that the meeting in Athens exceeded his expectations. He described it as “the start of a healthy dialogue” to break down prejudices.

Moreover, Politis says that they asked Ozersay about his statement that he was carrying ‘surprises’ with him to Athens, the Turkish Cypriot negotiator replied that he had not spoken of any surprises but that he had been asked by reporters what he was carrying with him to which he had replied that he could not say what he was carrying. He added that they had then asked him if he was carrying any surprises and he replied “if I have anything to say to the Greek government that you don’t already know, then, yes, perhaps that would be a surprise.”

Asked on Thursday when he would talk with Mavroyiannis again, Ozersay said: “I can call him now as soon as I return to the hotel. We have such a sincere relationship.”

On a somewhat different note, Turkish Cypriot leader Dervis Eroglu was quoted as saying that the Athens meeting has opened the door to Turkish Cypriot meetings with other foreign powers, noting that before the Cyprus Republic would try to thwart any such meetings.

Public opinion 71% in favour of talks

The first poll on the reaction to the joint statement for restarting the talks says 71% of Greek Greek Cypriots are in favour of President Anastasiades going ahead with the talks on the Cyprus problem with the aim of reaching an ultimate solution, while 24% are against his having signed the joint statement, Greek Cypriot daily Phileleftheros says, while 36% are against.

Overall 60% of the population believes DIKO should leave the government, with 27% saying it should stay and another 13% refusing to answer.

Within DIKO 58% are in favour of the joint statement with 38% against, while 61% want their party to remain in government and 34% want it to go.