President Ersin Tatar: "We have once again conveyed our position to the Secretary General"
President Ersin Tatar stated that the United Nations (UN) Secretary General Antonio Guterres will continue efforts to find a common ground between the two sides for the start of formal negotiations in the coming period.
The President said that the UN Secretary General, Antonio Guterres, had stated during his meeting in Brussels, that "the process can be accelerated and handled more seriously with the appointment of a Special Envoy". Stating that the Turkish Cypriot side would evaluate this in due course, the President said that Guterres also consulted with the other interested parties, Ankara, Athens and the Greek Cypriot side.
President Ersin Tatar, who met with the United Nations (UN) Secretary General Antonio Guterres in Brussels, made the remarks at a press conference at Ercan airport following his return from the Belgian capital on Saturday.
“UN SECRETARY GENERAL WILL REVIEW THE SUBJECT OF THE MEETING IN GENEVA AFTER THE NEW YORK MEETINGS IN SEPTEMBER”
President Ersin Tatar stated that he had held a ‘beneficial’ meeting that was held in a cordial atmosphere with the UN Secretary General for more than half an hour. President Tatar said: “At our meeting with the UN Secretary General, we have reiterated again that our sovereign equality is extremely important and we reaffirmed that as indicated in the six-point proposal we made in Geneva, as soon as our sovereign equality is recognised and our equal international status is accepted, we will be prepared to move on to formal negotiations”.
President Tatar stated that the UN Secretary General had in response to this stated that he was listening to the views of both sides, and that as he stated in his closing speech in Geneva, no formal negotiations have been initiated because no common ground has yet been found, but that he is in search of this and has made contacts with his special adviser.
President Tatar said: “However, it is obvious that following the New York meeting to which Mr Guterres has invited us to attend this September, he will evaluate whether there will be another five-plus-UN informal meeting in Geneva. Meanwhile, there is no question of us going directly to formal negotiations,” he added.
“WE HAVE CONVEYED OUR POSITION TO THE SECRETARY GENERAL AGAIN”
President Tatar reiterated that they had the opportunity to set out the position of the Turkish Cypriot side once again at their meeting with the UN Secretary General, adding: “We conveyed in a candid atmosphere why we requested this (meeting) from him and emphasised that when we look at the past of Cyprus, we are one of the founding partners and therefore we are as sovereign as the Greek Cypriots are. Therefore, on the basis of equality, we are entitled to the same international status as that of the Greek Cypriot side enjoys”.
President Tatar said: “Looking at the history of Cyprus, when Britain withdrew from Cyprus, it transferred its sovereignty to two separate peoples. Maybe the whole world still does not understand this. But we keep sharing this with the whole world and this is the basis of our struggle.”
"THERE IS NO QUESTION OF PATCHING US ONTO THE GREEK CYPRIOT ADMINISTERED REPUBLIC OF CYPRUS JUST BECAUSE THE EU WANTS IT"
Regarding the European Union (EU) Council Leaders' Summit, President Tatar said: "Some regretful statements made by officials and administrators of some EU member states has caused us disappointment."
Pointing out that the Presidency has made a statement regarding the decisions of the European Council Leaders' Summit, the President continued:
"Either they do not know the real facts of Cyprus or they do not want to know, because there are already two separate States in Cyprus. Our expectation of two States in Cyprus will be realised upon the acceptance of our sovereignty... When we look at the realities of Cyprus, there are two separate States. It is out of the question for us, the self-governing Turkish Cypriot people, to be patched onto the Greek Cypriot run Republic of Cyprus, just because the EU wants it. After all, these federal-based, bi-communal talks, including the Annan Plan, have never reached a conclusion because Greek Cypriots never intended to partner with us as equals. We shared again with the Secretary General that it is because all these opportunities have been tried and exhausted that we are now at this point.”
“THE SECRETARY GENERAL IS WELL INFORMED ON THE CYPRUS ISSUE”
President Tatar said that he congratulated Mr Guterres once again on his re-election as the UN Secretary-General for a five-year term and stated that “due to going through the experience in Crans Montana in 2017, Mr Guterres has become well informed on the Cyprus issue”. The President added that “within the comfort of this, he should look at whether there really is a common ground while managing this (Cyprus issue). We reiterated to him that of course we can move on to formal negotiations when there is common ground”.
“CONFIDENCE-BUILDING MEASURES CAN ONLY BE TAKEN ON ISSUES THAT MAKE DAILY LIFE EASIER”
Pointing out that Confidence Building Measures (CBMs) came to the fore in their meeting with Mr Guterres, President Tatar said that the Greek Cypriot leader, Nikos Anastasiades, had some expectations in this regard, however, as per the consultations between the Turkish Cypriot side and Turkey, the Turkish Cypriot side conveyed the position that, as was done for the border crossings, some decisions under the CBMs can be taken to make daily life better for the Turkish Cypriots and Greek Cypriots .
President Tatar said: “We expressed to the Secretary-General that the important issues that will affect the essence of the Cyprus issue and therefore derail our expectations about sovereignty will not be within the framework of CBMs and that the Cyprus problem can only be addressed in a holistic way. He also accepted them with understanding.”
THE SUBJECT OF HYDROCARBON
Pointing out that the hydrocarbon issue came to the agenda at the EU summit, President Tatar said that “there are two sides, the Turks and the Greeks, on the hydrocarbon issue, and it is unacceptable for the Greek side to act unilaterally in avoidance of the Turkish Cypriot rights”.
Stating that the Turkish Cypriot side has been forced to take similar actions with Turkey on this issue the President added: "However, the Turkish Cypriot proposal made on July 13, 2019, for the formation of a joint committee, continues its validity. This committee should be established, and these processes should be managed by this committee."
“Such an approach is the most correct way,” President Tatar said. “Because sovereignty, justice and expectation justifies this form of action as a way forward. The Greek Cypriot side are not the sole owners of the island of Cyprus. There is an injustice and inequality prevailing which needs to be addressed.”
MATTER OF APPOINTMENT OF ‘SPECIAL ENVOY’ BY UNSG GUTERRES
Stating that the UN Secretary General had made suggestions that the process could be accelerated and handled more efficiently with the appointment of a ‘Special Envoy’ to help facilitation in the finding of a common ground between the sides, the President stated:
“We expressed to the UN Secretary General that formal negotiations can begin with the acceptance of our sovereign equality and international equal status. The Secretary General has respected this and said he will seek to find common ground in the coming period.
“Regarding these efforts, he suggested to us that this process could be accelerated and handled more efficiently with the appointment of a special envoy. We told him that we would consider this at our end in due course. Of course, he consulted this with other parties as well such as with Ankara, Athens and the Greek Cypriot side. An evaluation will be made on this issue.”
“WE MADE CONTACTS WITH THE AMBASSADORS OF THE REPUBLIC OF TURKEY IN BOTH NATO AND BRUSSELS IN THE EU”
President Tatar also stated that they had contacts with the ambassadors of the Republic of Turkey in NATO and in Brussels, and that they held consultations on the Cyprus issue and said: “Brussels is an important place, the centre of the EU. The evaluation meetings we held with the ambassadors there also helped us a lot and we will carry them forward.”
THE SUBJECT OF “THE FOOT CHAT” WITH MITSOTAKIS
President Ersin Tatar clarified some comments by pointing out that a photo of the conversation he had with Greek Prime Minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, in the breakfast room of the hotel he was staying, was presented to the media, stating:
“I explained to him, the Prime Minister of Greece, why we are demanding two states, reminded him that there are already two states in Cyprus, that it will not be possible to take Cyprus to a different point or status by counting back 60 years, that the talks on the federal basis have not been successful for the last 50 years, and these opportunities have been lost. He told me that 'this will not be accepted'. After all, he is the Prime Minister of Greece and the guarantor country. I had also discussed these issues with Greek Foreign Minister Dendias at the meetings held in Geneva.”
President Tatar stated that he did not hold an official meeting with Mr Mitsotakis, but that there was no one who didn't hear about their on foot meeting, saying: “What we did was right, if you get an opportunity to talk even if it is in a hall, you take advantage of it. There is nothing better than talking" he said.
The President said that the UN Secretary General, Antonio Guterres, had stated during his meeting in Brussels, that "the process can be accelerated and handled more seriously with the appointment of a Special Envoy". Stating that the Turkish Cypriot side would evaluate this in due course, the President said that Guterres also consulted with the other interested parties, Ankara, Athens and the Greek Cypriot side.
President Ersin Tatar, who met with the United Nations (UN) Secretary General Antonio Guterres in Brussels, made the remarks at a press conference at Ercan airport following his return from the Belgian capital on Saturday.
“UN SECRETARY GENERAL WILL REVIEW THE SUBJECT OF THE MEETING IN GENEVA AFTER THE NEW YORK MEETINGS IN SEPTEMBER”
President Ersin Tatar stated that he had held a ‘beneficial’ meeting that was held in a cordial atmosphere with the UN Secretary General for more than half an hour. President Tatar said: “At our meeting with the UN Secretary General, we have reiterated again that our sovereign equality is extremely important and we reaffirmed that as indicated in the six-point proposal we made in Geneva, as soon as our sovereign equality is recognised and our equal international status is accepted, we will be prepared to move on to formal negotiations”.
President Tatar stated that the UN Secretary General had in response to this stated that he was listening to the views of both sides, and that as he stated in his closing speech in Geneva, no formal negotiations have been initiated because no common ground has yet been found, but that he is in search of this and has made contacts with his special adviser.
President Tatar said: “However, it is obvious that following the New York meeting to which Mr Guterres has invited us to attend this September, he will evaluate whether there will be another five-plus-UN informal meeting in Geneva. Meanwhile, there is no question of us going directly to formal negotiations,” he added.
“WE HAVE CONVEYED OUR POSITION TO THE SECRETARY GENERAL AGAIN”
President Tatar reiterated that they had the opportunity to set out the position of the Turkish Cypriot side once again at their meeting with the UN Secretary General, adding: “We conveyed in a candid atmosphere why we requested this (meeting) from him and emphasised that when we look at the past of Cyprus, we are one of the founding partners and therefore we are as sovereign as the Greek Cypriots are. Therefore, on the basis of equality, we are entitled to the same international status as that of the Greek Cypriot side enjoys”.
President Tatar said: “Looking at the history of Cyprus, when Britain withdrew from Cyprus, it transferred its sovereignty to two separate peoples. Maybe the whole world still does not understand this. But we keep sharing this with the whole world and this is the basis of our struggle.”
"THERE IS NO QUESTION OF PATCHING US ONTO THE GREEK CYPRIOT ADMINISTERED REPUBLIC OF CYPRUS JUST BECAUSE THE EU WANTS IT"
Regarding the European Union (EU) Council Leaders' Summit, President Tatar said: "Some regretful statements made by officials and administrators of some EU member states has caused us disappointment."
Pointing out that the Presidency has made a statement regarding the decisions of the European Council Leaders' Summit, the President continued:
"Either they do not know the real facts of Cyprus or they do not want to know, because there are already two separate States in Cyprus. Our expectation of two States in Cyprus will be realised upon the acceptance of our sovereignty... When we look at the realities of Cyprus, there are two separate States. It is out of the question for us, the self-governing Turkish Cypriot people, to be patched onto the Greek Cypriot run Republic of Cyprus, just because the EU wants it. After all, these federal-based, bi-communal talks, including the Annan Plan, have never reached a conclusion because Greek Cypriots never intended to partner with us as equals. We shared again with the Secretary General that it is because all these opportunities have been tried and exhausted that we are now at this point.”
“THE SECRETARY GENERAL IS WELL INFORMED ON THE CYPRUS ISSUE”
President Tatar said that he congratulated Mr Guterres once again on his re-election as the UN Secretary-General for a five-year term and stated that “due to going through the experience in Crans Montana in 2017, Mr Guterres has become well informed on the Cyprus issue”. The President added that “within the comfort of this, he should look at whether there really is a common ground while managing this (Cyprus issue). We reiterated to him that of course we can move on to formal negotiations when there is common ground”.
“CONFIDENCE-BUILDING MEASURES CAN ONLY BE TAKEN ON ISSUES THAT MAKE DAILY LIFE EASIER”
Pointing out that Confidence Building Measures (CBMs) came to the fore in their meeting with Mr Guterres, President Tatar said that the Greek Cypriot leader, Nikos Anastasiades, had some expectations in this regard, however, as per the consultations between the Turkish Cypriot side and Turkey, the Turkish Cypriot side conveyed the position that, as was done for the border crossings, some decisions under the CBMs can be taken to make daily life better for the Turkish Cypriots and Greek Cypriots .
President Tatar said: “We expressed to the Secretary-General that the important issues that will affect the essence of the Cyprus issue and therefore derail our expectations about sovereignty will not be within the framework of CBMs and that the Cyprus problem can only be addressed in a holistic way. He also accepted them with understanding.”
THE SUBJECT OF HYDROCARBON
Pointing out that the hydrocarbon issue came to the agenda at the EU summit, President Tatar said that “there are two sides, the Turks and the Greeks, on the hydrocarbon issue, and it is unacceptable for the Greek side to act unilaterally in avoidance of the Turkish Cypriot rights”.
Stating that the Turkish Cypriot side has been forced to take similar actions with Turkey on this issue the President added: "However, the Turkish Cypriot proposal made on July 13, 2019, for the formation of a joint committee, continues its validity. This committee should be established, and these processes should be managed by this committee."
“Such an approach is the most correct way,” President Tatar said. “Because sovereignty, justice and expectation justifies this form of action as a way forward. The Greek Cypriot side are not the sole owners of the island of Cyprus. There is an injustice and inequality prevailing which needs to be addressed.”
MATTER OF APPOINTMENT OF ‘SPECIAL ENVOY’ BY UNSG GUTERRES
Stating that the UN Secretary General had made suggestions that the process could be accelerated and handled more efficiently with the appointment of a ‘Special Envoy’ to help facilitation in the finding of a common ground between the sides, the President stated:
“We expressed to the UN Secretary General that formal negotiations can begin with the acceptance of our sovereign equality and international equal status. The Secretary General has respected this and said he will seek to find common ground in the coming period.
“Regarding these efforts, he suggested to us that this process could be accelerated and handled more efficiently with the appointment of a special envoy. We told him that we would consider this at our end in due course. Of course, he consulted this with other parties as well such as with Ankara, Athens and the Greek Cypriot side. An evaluation will be made on this issue.”
“WE MADE CONTACTS WITH THE AMBASSADORS OF THE REPUBLIC OF TURKEY IN BOTH NATO AND BRUSSELS IN THE EU”
President Tatar also stated that they had contacts with the ambassadors of the Republic of Turkey in NATO and in Brussels, and that they held consultations on the Cyprus issue and said: “Brussels is an important place, the centre of the EU. The evaluation meetings we held with the ambassadors there also helped us a lot and we will carry them forward.”
THE SUBJECT OF “THE FOOT CHAT” WITH MITSOTAKIS
President Ersin Tatar clarified some comments by pointing out that a photo of the conversation he had with Greek Prime Minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, in the breakfast room of the hotel he was staying, was presented to the media, stating:
“I explained to him, the Prime Minister of Greece, why we are demanding two states, reminded him that there are already two states in Cyprus, that it will not be possible to take Cyprus to a different point or status by counting back 60 years, that the talks on the federal basis have not been successful for the last 50 years, and these opportunities have been lost. He told me that 'this will not be accepted'. After all, he is the Prime Minister of Greece and the guarantor country. I had also discussed these issues with Greek Foreign Minister Dendias at the meetings held in Geneva.”
President Tatar stated that he did not hold an official meeting with Mr Mitsotakis, but that there was no one who didn't hear about their on foot meeting, saying: “What we did was right, if you get an opportunity to talk even if it is in a hall, you take advantage of it. There is nothing better than talking" he said.