Eroglu: The agreement will be a partnership formed by two sovereign states; If you give Varosha today, they will ask for another place tomorrow Turkish Cypriot daily Kibris newspaper (09.03.15) reports that Turkish Cypriot leader, Dervis Erogluhas alleged that the Greek Cypriots have excessive demands at the negotiating table and that the agreement to be reached in Cyprus “will not be the continuation of the Republic of Cyprus, but a partnership formed by two sovereign states”.
In statements during a visit to occupied villages in Keryneia area, Eroglu claimed that the joint declaration of 11 February 2014 says that sovereignty derives from the “two peoples” and added: “This is sine qua non for us”.
Eroglu reiterated that he became “candidate” in the forthcoming “presidential elections” on 19 April in order to conclude the Cyprus problem within two years. He argued that the Greek Cypriot leader is currently not at the table, but within the forthcoming period the negotiations will definitely resume. “I am still at the table and I will be there until 18 April”, he alleged.
Meanwhile, Turkish Cypriot daily Star Kibris newspaper (08.03.15) reported that in statements to Turkish CNN-Turk television, Eroglu argued that his mission is not to settle the issue of the occupied fenced off city of Varosha, but to solve the Cyprus problem. Asked why he is against the return of Varosha [to his legal owners], Eroglu replied: “My aim is not to solve the Varosha issue. It is to comprehensively solve the problem. One colleague says: ‘Let us open Varosha, it will contribute to the economy’. Another says ‘let it open under our control’. When we refer to the continuation of the negotiations on the one hand and we open Varosha under our control on the other, there will be no negotiating table left. Another says ‘let us give it’. In such a case, it will be tantamount to you accepting a crime of war, as the Greek Cypriots allege. […] My mission is to solve the Cyprus problem, not Varosha. You will give Varosha today and tomorrow they will ask for other places and this salami policy will continue. There will be no solution with this method”.
Asked whether he has any expectations from the newly elected Greek Prime Minister Tsipras, Eroglu said he had no expectations and argued that whoever comes to power in Greece, the way Greece sees the Turkish Cypriots and the Greek Cypriots will not change.
Asked about the role of the UN and the EU in the solution, Eroglu argued that “we cannot agree today [on the island] because of the mistakes committed by these two organizations”. “The main responsible for not having an agreement today on the island is the UN Security Council and the EU. The UNSC has five permanent members. Three of them are in favour of the Greek Cypriots. While the situation is like this, why should the Greek Cypriots want an agreement?”
