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Contacts by Lute to lock the process
The United Nations want to ensure that the 5+1 is not the end of the road. An important point in Lute’s agenda is her meetings with the two negotiators, in an effort to determine the way in which things will develop at the 5+1 meeting in Geneva on April 27-29. The UN want to avoid a potential impasse. Ankara has once again not confirmed the date it will meet Antonio Guterres’ special envoy, something which is slowing down the process, in a period of time when the positions of the two sides continue to show that there is a chasm between them. The Greek FM Nikos Dendias will be in Cairo today to prevent any potential surprises from Ankara on energy. He will then make a stop in Nicosia for a briefing and coordination with his Cypriot counterpart and EU-Turkish relations in view of what is to come.
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Main News
Lute arrives in Cyprus for contacts with both sides
Alithia, Haravgi, Phileleftheros, Politis
Negotiations Process
OVERVIEW
The dailies report on the importance of the string of contacts to be held in Nicosia on Monday by the UN Secretary General’s (UNSG) special envoy Jane Holl Lute, who the papers claim will be attempting to ensure that the informal five-party summit does not lead to a dead end.
Lute is set to begin with a meeting with the UNSG’s special representative Elizabeth Spehar and the UN Good Offices team, before holding separate meetings with the two leaders, to be followed by meetings with the two sides’ chief negotiators. Phileleftheros reports that Lute will strive to achieve a meeting between President Nicos Anastasiades and the TC leader Ersin Tatar, who however remains reluctant.
Phileleftheros reports that this week will feature decisive developments for the Cyprus problem, as Lute begins Monday a series of contacts with both sides to prepare the groundwork for the informal five-party summit. The paper reports that Lute’s goal is to ensure that the informal summit will open up the path for further negotiations.
Citing diplomatic sources from Nicosia, Phileleftheros reports that the GC side is expecting to hear from Lute what the UNSG has in mind for the informal meeting. The paper writes that information regarding the promotion of an intermediary solution are becoming all the more intense, with this matter likely to be clarified during contacts with Lute. Politis reports that Lute is also expected to confirm the positions held by the two sides on certain substantive matters, in order to avoid surprises at the informal summit to the greatest extent possible.
Phileleftheros reports that Anastasiades is expected to express his determination to participate at the informal summit with the aim of resuming formal negotiations for a resolution of the Cyprus problem on the basis of UN Security Council (UNSC) resolutions. Nicosia will likely also stress the need for the EU to be represented at the meeting.
Haravgi reports that the director of the President’s press office Victoras Papadopoulos reaffirmed on Sunday that the GC side will not be discussing anything other than a solution in the form of a bizonal bicommunal federation (BBF) with political equality. Papadopoulos also reiterated that the GC side is striving to see negotiations pick up from where they left off at Crans-Montana, with all convergences reached thus far, within the Guterres framework, and in line with UNSC resolutions and EU values and principles. Papadopoulos said that Anastasiades’ constant contacts on a European and international level both publicly and backstage are focused on securing a viable and functional solution.
Politis reports that the two sides’ approaches thus far do not create much room for any sounding agreement during the informal meeting, and as such the UN is attempting to ensure that it will at least not lead to a dead end. The paper reports that this is why the phrase ‘within a foreseeable horizon’ is being repeated, since if all goes smoothly it is likely that a formal conference will be organised over the summer. Politis reports that an impasse that will bring the new initiative to an end does not serve the plans of any party involved, though consequences appear to be less severe for Turkey.
Politis reports that Turkey’s delay in providing Lute with a suitable date for contacts is just one more example of the way in which Turkey is moulding procedural developments to its liking, which was also seen through Turkey’s delay in confirming the dates of the five-party summit. On its part, the paper writes that the UN is not exerting significant pressure on Turkey, as the international organisation believes that they can’t force any side into doing anything.
Phileleftheros reports that Turkey is remaining firm in its position in favour of a two-state solution, as seen through statements issued Sunday by the Turkish Foreign Minister Melvut Cavusoglu, who said that given the realities on the island, Turkey supports a two-state solution based on the sovereign equality of TCs. The paper also reports on statements issued by the Turkish Defence Minister Hulusi Akar, who said that Turkey still understands matters as it did in 1974, noting that the presence of Turkish troops in Cyprus must be evaluated on the basis of international law. Politis reports that Akar also referred to a ‘strategic blindness’ on the part of the EU, and stressed that if the EU wants to participate in resolving Cyprob it must not see matters one-sidedly.
The dailies also report on news of a potential Turkish-Egyptian deal on sea boundaries in the Eastern Mediterranean. Politis reports that just days after Turkey announced that it would be willing to negotiate a deal to delineate the boundary between the two countries’ maritime zones, the Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias was on Monday in Egypt for contacts.
Alithia reports that in his statements, Cavusoglu said that energy projects that for political reasons are attempting to exclude Turkey have no chances of success. Cavusoglu referred once again to Erdogan’s proposal for a regional conference, which he said would serve to transform energy into a means for peace and cooperation. Cavusoglu also said both Cyprus sides could participate, or alternatively a separate platform could be launched to work out how to fairly distribute energy resources among the two sides. According to Alithia, Cavusoglu said that “if we’re talking about fair sharing, we’re not afraid to meet with the GC side in this form. But if you don’t want the ‘TRNC’ to participate, then the GC side can’t participate either.”
The dailies report that Dendias was expected to then travel to Cyprus on Monday afternoon for contacts with his GC counterpart. Phileleftheros reports that while Cyprob is at the top of the agenda of discussions, talks will also focus on regional developments, EU-Turkish relations ahead of the Foreign Affairs Council and EUCO in March, and developments involving the EastMed pipeline.
Politis reports that a new article in the Greek paper To Vima argues that the GC government was well aware from the outset of ideas that begun to be thrown around by Egypt regarding a change to the course of the EastMed pipeline in order to bypass Cyprus. The report said that Greece informed Cyprus as soon as the Egyptian President first voiced the idea during his two-day visit to Athens last November. Politis reports that the article claims that Dendias informed the GC side on the matter during his visit to Nicosia on December 4, which did not only include coordination efforts ahead of the then-EUCO that was to discuss EU-Turkish relations but also included a briefing on scenarios for the changing of the course of the pipeline.
KEY ACTORS
Papadopoulos (RoC)
>> GC side will not be discussing anything other than a BBF with political equality
>> GC side is striving to see negotiations pick up from where they left off at Crans-Montana, with all convergences reached thus far, within the Guterres framework, and in line with UNSC resolutions and EU values and principles
GC side is striving to see negotiations pick up from where they left off at Crans-Montana, with all convergences reached thus far, within the Guterres framework, and in line with UNSC resolutions and EU values and principles
>> Anastasiades’ contacts on a European and international level both publicly and backstage are focused on securing a viable and functional solution
Cavusoglu (Turkey)
>> Realities on the island predicate that only viable solution is two-states with sovereign equality
>> Both sides can participate in Erdogan’s proposal for a regional energy conference, but the GC side cannot participate if the north is left out
>> Alternative solution to achieving a fair energy deal between the two sides is to organise a separate conference that will focus exclusively on this matter
Akar (Turkey)
>> Turkey still understands matters as it did in 1974, the presence of Turkish troops in Cyprus must be evaluated on the basis of international law
>> EU employing a ‘strategic blindness’ – if the EU wants to participate in resolving Cyprob it must not see matters one-sidedly