Current developments in the Cyprus peace effort and the need for decisiveness towards a negotiated settlement, which will meet the expectations of the Greek Cypriots without ignoring the concerns of the Turkish Cypriots, was the focus of a lunch President Nicos Anastasiades hosted for the former Turkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat.
In his statements to the press after the two-hour long meeting, the President said the meeting with Talat does not affect his scheduled meetings with current Turkish Cypriot leader Dervis Eroglu, on the contrary – he pointed out – it assists in building more understanding and contributes towards the dialogue with the current leader of the Turkish Cypriot community Dervis Eroglu.
President Anastasiades expressed satisfaction with the meeting, adding that he has had and will continue to have close contacts with him.
He said, they discussed current developments in the Cyprus problem, pointing out that the most important thing, on which they both agree, is that there must be determination by all in order to reach the soonest possible a solution that will meet the expectations of the Greek Cypriots and will not ignore the concerns raised by the Turkish Cypriots.
He added that in a prosperous country the fundamental principles that derive from EU membership and Cyprus’ status as a full EU member should not be ignored.
The President also said that during the meeting concerns and thoughts were raised by his interlocutor on the next steps to be taken so that trust can be built between the two communities and will lead to a more productive peace process.
He also added that both he and Talat had the chance today to ascertain that there is a genuine desire for a solution that will reunite the country and give the opportunity to all its legal Cypriot citizens to prosper in the European Union.
In statements in English, the President described the meeting as very constructive and very friendly, adding that they exchanged views and tried to find ways to be much more productive during the current negotiation process.
“We agreed that we have to work much more intensively in order to speed up the whole process and expressed our hope that with a good understanding and much more will, we can reach the soonest possible a solution which will not ignore either the concerns of the Greek Cypriots or the concerns of the Turkish Cypriots compatriots,” he stressed.
“We have to realize that as a country we are a member of the EU and we are Europeans, all of us, all those people who are legally living in this blessed island and we have to work together, how to implement the acquis, the human rights with full respect and full prospects”, the President said.
Speaking in English, former Turkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat described the meeting as fruitful, adding that they both exchanged views regarding the Cyprus problem and the ongoing negotiations.
Talat said that the target is to reach a comprehensive settlement and in order to do that, one must understand the other. He said that to this end, he suggested the introduction of Turkish language lessons in Greek Cypriot schools and Greek language lessons in Turkish Cypriot schools, pointing out that this needs to be supported by the leaders and the media. He also said that “creating a peace culture is very crucial”.
Talat also made statements in Turkish, saying that he had the chance to be briefed on President Anastasiades` views and thoughts on the ongoing process, adding that this is very important because the two sides will have to solve the problem and to reach this objective, they need to understand each other very well.
Talat went on to say however that the talks are conducted by Anastasiades and Eroglu, thus he does not think it is right for him to have a role.
However, he added that he could be of assistance, putting forward some thoughts and new ideas.
Talat was in the leadership of the Turkish Cypriot community between 2005-2010, during which he sat at the negotiation table with the late President Tasos Papadopoulos and former President Dimitris Christofias.
Today’s lunch lasted two hours and President Anastasiades was accompanied by former Agriculture Minister Costas Themistocleous while Talat sat at the lunch with Fikre Toros, president of the Turkish Cypriot Chamber of Commerce and Chairman of Peace Center.
Themistocleous served as Minister of Agriculture under the late President Glafcos Clerides` administration between March 1998-February 2003.
Cyprus has been divided since 1974 when Turkey invaded and occupied its northern third. The latest round of UN talks is currently underway between President Anastasiades and Dervis Eroglu with the aim to reunite the island under a federal roof.