Christodoulides: I truly believe that Erhurman also wants a solution

President Nikos Christodoulides on Tuesday said that he “truly believes” both that a solution to the Cyprus problem is possible, and that his interlocutor, Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhurman, also wishes for the Cyprus problem to be solved. “I would not be devoting so much time to the Cyprus issue if I did not truly believe that we could reach a solution. I have numerous domestic issues on which I could focus. The reason I am dedicating so much time to this is because I genuinely believe we can achieve it if there is the political will,” he told newspaper Yeniduzen. He added that he remains “cautiously optimistic” in this regard, and that “I truly believe that Erhurman also wants a solution”. “Let us be honest, we do not agree on everything, but the solution will mean compromises from all of us. Because, as I told you before, the issue is not just in the hands of Erhurman and me. There are external factors playing a more significant role,” he said. He also referred to the fact he had telephoned Erhurman shortly after he was elected as Turkish Cypriot leader last October, and said “let’s make history together”, adding that “I truly believe that we can write history together”. On this front, he said that “if everything were in the hands of Erhurman and me, we would reach a solution by next week” but admitted that “the decision does not depend solely on us”. Looking to the more immediate future of the Cyprus problem, he said that he will “do my best to make significant progress on all three issues” – confidence-building measures, the meeting’s methodology, and the substance of the talks – upon which United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres had called for progress when he visited the island in July. This, he said, will be done “so that the secretary-general can be in a position to convene an enlarged meeting and restart the negotiations”. ‘I am ready to attend an enlarged meeting even next week’ He then added that he is “ready to attend such an enlarged meeting even next week”, involving the island’s two sides, its three guarantor powers, Greece, Turkey, and the United Kingdom, and the UN. “What I conveyed to Erhurman during our meeting was this: we have some differences in our views, which is perfectly normal. I told him that the best way to resolve these differences, our differing approaches to the core issues, and our disagreements is to sit down at the negotiating table,” he said. He added that “otherwise, if we do not sit down together and conduct a genuine negotiation process, we will continue to say, ‘this is my position, and that is my position’”. Regarding Erhurman’s “four points”, which he says must be fulfilled for negotiations in earnest to recommence, Christodoulides said that “I understand this approach”, and that “I have the utmost respect for him, and therefore I take his words into consideration”. Those four points foresee that the Greek Cypriot side accept political equality, time-limit negotiations, and preserve all past agreements, and that the UN guarantee that embargoes placed on the Turkish Cypriots be lifted if the Greek Cypriot side leaves the negotiating table again. “I told him, ‘you have four issues regarding methodology’. I completely agree with you on the points of convergence. We need to protect what has been gained in negotiations. As for the timeline, if we start from Crans-Montana, we know very well where we disagreed, so this time, our job will be easier,” Christodoulides said. On the matter of political equality, he said that “of course, I respect political equality” and made reference to a joint statement made by both leaders on the matter in December last year. “The only point with which I disagreed regarding his methodological suggestions was the issue of pre-determined sanctions. I told him, ‘this is not an incentive for a solution’. If there is political will, that will become evident at the negotiating table. Therefore, the sooner we sit at the negotiating table, the more we will see whether we are truly serious,” he said. Greek Cypriots have no ‘plan B’ On this front, he said that the Greek Cypriot side has “no ‘plan B’” other than a federal solution to the Cyprus problem. “The current status quo does not allow our country to reach its full potential. At the same time, we are witnessing what is happening in our region. There is no situation where a conflict must forever remain frozen,” he said. He then described himself as the “first president of the Republic of Cyprus from the 1974 generation”, and said that therefore, “I have no personal connection to the past”. “I come from Paphos. Both my late parents come from mixed villages. Personally, I never had the experience of living with a Turkish Cypriot. I met a Turkish Cypriot for the first time in my life when I went to New York for my studies,” he said. The EU will guarantee that Turkey fulfils its obligations in Cyprus He then spoke on the European Union’s role in a post-solution Cyprus, saying that the EU is “the best safeguard, the strongest guarantee, for all of us, even for non-Cypriots living in Cyprus, in terms of human rights, welfare, and living conditions”. “As you know, the overwhelming majority of our laws come from Brussels,” he said, before later adding that “therefore, whatever we do, there is a European framework, and we must operate and adapt within this framework”. He said that “the European Union’s role in this process is the strongest guarantee for the concerns of our Turkish Cypriot citizens” regarding safety and security. “I fully respect the concerns of the Turkish Cypriots, but the Greek Cypriots also have some concerns. When I talk to Greek Cypriots and explain the situation to them, they ask me, ‘but who will give us the guarantee that Turkey will implement the solution, that is, that Turkey will fulfil the elements of a solution it is supposed to implement?” he said. The answer, he said, is “only the European Union”.