?he government’s main objective and top priority is to find a comprehensive solution to the Cyprus problem on the basis of the relevant United Nations resolutions, the European acquis and the principles and values of the European Union, Cyprus President, Nikos Christodoulides said in his address at an event organised by the Cypriot community of Northern Greece in Thessaloniki on Wednesday.
He added that the contribution and support of the Greek government and the Greek people in achieving this goal remain unwavering and thanked Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis for “the full cooperation and active support to our efforts to achieve our common aspirations”.
According to the President of the Republic, his presence at the event was intended to emphasise the strong ties of Cyprus and the Cypriot people with Thessaloniki and the wider region of Macedonia, but also to acknowledge the contribution of all Cypriots, both residents and students there, in further strengthening these relations and the continuous
struggle for the resolution of the Cyprus problem, the reunification and liberation of the country.
This year marks 50 years since the illegal Turkish invasion of Cyprus, 50 years of occupation and division of Cyprus, 50 years of having refugees, missing and enclaved people, 50 years of flagrant violation of human rights and relevant resolutions of the United Nations and the General Assembly, President Christodoulides continued, adding that 50 years is too long and every day that passes makes efforts for the liberation and reunification of Cyprus and its people even more difficult.
He noted that Turkey and the occupying regime seek to consolidate division and partition and legitimize the consequences of the occupation, both at the rhetoric level and in practice, by imposing new faits accomplis on the ground.
Finding a comprehensive solution to the Cyprus problem on the basis of the relevant UN resolutions, with a single sovereignty, a single citizenship, a single international personality, always in accord
ance with the relevant UN resolutions, the European acquis and of course the principles and values on which the European Union is based, is the main objective and the highest priority of the government, the President of the Republic stressed, adding that from the first day of assuming office the government has been working intensively in this direction.
“The focus of our efforts, which I am pleased to say are acknowledged by the international community, is to break the deadlock and resume talks from where they were interrupted in the summer of 2017 in Crans-Montana,” he said, adding that he had the opportunity to convey this again to the UN Secretary-General’s Personal Envoy, who is in Cyprus these days for a second round of contacts.
“An appointment that was made possible after our concerted efforts and in recognition of our political will to resolve the Cyprus problem,” he noted, while expressing hope that the Turkish side, despite the continued rhetoric and practice to the contrary, will finally show wil
lingness towards the resumption of talks and proceed to the negotiating table.
In this difficult effort, the contribution and support of the Greek government and the Greek people remains unwavering, the President of the Republic continued, while thanking the Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis for “the full cooperation and active support to our efforts to achieve our common goals”.
“Nicosia and Athens, Athens and Nicosia remain fully coordinated in promoting the objective of resuming negotiations at all levels, in all international fora, first and foremost, of course, within our common home, our great European family,” he said.
According to President Christodoulides, this year includes another important milestone, that of the 20th anniversary of the Republic of Cyprus’ accession to the European Union, the most important achievement, as he said, of the Cypriot people since the establishment of the Republic of Cyprus, which could not have been achieved without the support of the Greek government, and wa
s the result of the culmination of “masterly, persistent and long-lasting diplomatic efforts and full coordination between Athens and Nicosia”.
“Fifty years after the Turkish invasion and 20 years since our accession to the European Union, the occupation continues and Nicosia remains the last divided capital of Europe. Taking into account these two important milestones, but also the need to end the occupation and reunite our country, I would like to stress the importance of a more active and proactive involvement of the European Union both in the efforts to resolve the Cyprus problem and in the content of a possible solution. Taking into consideration the full range of Euro-Turkish relations, the European Union can lead us to a mutually beneficial situation through the resolution of the Cyprus problem”, he stressed.
He also noted that the Republic of Cyprus will continue to be a member state of the Union even after the Cyprus settlement, which means that ensuring the proper functioning of the Cypriot state
also affects the proper functioning of the European Union itself. He added that, as it has been demonstrated by the role of the Republic of Cyprus in the response to the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, which also reflects the role of the European Union through the Republic of Cyprus, the member state neihbouring the region, a reunited Cyprus which is an EU member state would have substantial benefits for the European Union itself and for all states.
Christdoulides also welcomed the support from Brussels and other countries, the United States, the United Kingdom, the United Arab Emirates and Greece, to the initiative that the Republic of Cyprus first presented in October 2023 in Paris, “which proves in practice through the launching of its implementation that despite being a small country Cyprus can contribute substantially to addressing major regional challenges.”
The President announced that the government would bear the costs for a monument in Thessaloniki, the bust of EOKA hero Kyriakos Matsis at the Aristo
tle University of Thessaloniki, and will work with the University Rectorate to restore the bust of ‘the only EOKA university graduate hero’.
In view of the 50th anniversary of the Turkish invasion, he also thanked the Greek people, the people of Thessaloniki, Macedonia, Thrace and all of Greece, for their unwavering support to the Greeks of Cyprus who fled to these lands when they became refugees in 1974, “whether they were families, students or dozens of Cypriot children who found shelter and were accommodated for months in the Papafio Orphanage, the Children’s Home of Oraiokastro, the Anatolia College, the American Agricultural School, or in Mikra”.
Addressing the students, President Christodoulides said that their education in the high-quality academic institutions of Thessaloniki and Greece in general is the best guarantee for their personal progress and development.
Cyprus has been divided since 1974, when Turkey invaded and occupied its northern third. Repeated rounds of UN-led peace talks have so fa
r failed to yield results. The latest round of negotiations, in July 2017 at the Swiss resort of Crans-Montana ended inconclusively. UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres appointed María Ángela Holguín Cuéllar of Colombia as his personal envoy for Cyprus, to assume a Good Offices role on his behalf and search for common ground on the way forward in the Cyprus issue.
Source: Cyprus News Agency
