‘The UN must keep its word on Cyprus problem’
The United Nations must keep its word regarding the Cyprus problem, Turkish Cypriot opposition political party CTP leader Tufan Erhurman said on Thursday.
He was speaking about his plans to bring about a solution to the Cyprus problem, having set out his own five-point plan to solve the Cyprus problem before travelling to New York last month.
One of those five points was that any negotiation process be designed with a strict timetable and with a “sense of urgency” and Erhurman doubled down on this point on Thursday.
“Our concern is not just to sit at the table. A new process with a time limit can begin. There is nothing left unsaid about the Cyprus problem. This process must definitely be result-oriented,” he began.
“We will not accept the idea of starting from scratch. The rapprochements already reached are black and white. They have already been accepted. Otherwise, we have to start from scratch all over again.”
With this in mind, he pointed to another of his five points – that any return to the current status quo be prevented when the next round of negotiations begins.
“We must not return to the status quo if the Greek Cypriots drag their feet or flip the table,” he said.
Of the five points at large, he said, “this is not a list of preconditions. All of these have been listed by the UN in its own conditions that it has put forward at various times. The UN must keep its word. This is not a precondition.”
He added, “the rotating presidency was written in black and white. There is no basis for the UN to go back and say, ‘let’s make this a bargaining chip’. This is the UN’s word, let them stand by it. The time limit is Guterres’ own word. Let him keep his word, too.”
He also turned his attention to President Nikos Christodoulides, saying “Christodoulides is now wearing the mask of the side which wants a solution, which he does not deserve.”
“They say they are ready to meet within the framework of the UN Security Council’s resolutions. If we say that we are ready to meet within that framework, the first question which will come up will be, ‘Mr Christodoulides, you say you want to continue from where you left off in Crans Montana, so why did you leave then?’”
“If someone wants to start from where they left off, why did they leave at that exact moment?” he added.