GCC Press Review 14 Apr 2021

Front Page Headlines

Politis

Latsia Municipality ‘punishing’ 11-year-old with cancer

Show of unprecedented lack of sensitivity to victims of the Astrasol factory.

  • Cyprus problem: On the road to ‘5+1’ and the checkpoints
  • Piale Pasha: They’re leaving quickly from homes ready to collapse
  • Parliament: They’re gargling conflict of interest
  • 619 new cases yesterday: Relaxations a riddle, vaccinations a source of stress
  • Johnson & Johnson: On ice in the USA, delays in the EU

Phileleftheros

They’re leaving the economy dry

OEV-KEVE: Without state guarantees businesses are at risk of thrombotic stroke. Parliament citing formalities and regulations and to the referral of the bill to the new Parliament.

  • Guterres plan ready for Geneva process: He’s preparing to unlock in three moves
  • Fan of doubts from Ankara
  • “It’s all lies,” says the Bishop regarding the rape
  • Barrage of announcements on vaccines across the world: Information on adverse effects causing turmoil

Haravgi

700 thousand departures already lost, grim prospects for 2021 too

Contradictory decisions must be lifted and tourism for Cypriots should be opened.

  • Cyprus problem: The chasm is big, Akinci says. Visits by Dendias and Cavusoglu
  • Bicommunal committees discussing criteria for the reopening of crossings
  • Parliament asking for Council of Ministers minutes regarding the Ayia Napa marina
  • One death, 228 hospitalised, 619 cases with Larnaca taking the lead (1.28% positivity rate)

Cyprus Mail

FM, employers slam parliament

After bill to help businesses shelved, Petrides says opposition does not care about workers.

  • Man admits to murdering the woman whose body found in field last month
  • Hospitals critical, private sector could do ‘more to help’

Alithia

Parliament with DIKO at the head left businesses cash-strapped

Bill for state guarantees on pause indefinitely – They’re depriving businesses of 1 billion euros in guarantees and a cash flow of 1.43 billion euros. Foreign Minister: The invocation of the position that the discussion of the bill has been postponed until after the elections is because the bill was not submitted in the form of an urgent matter is nothing but a pretext and a laughable excuse. Erotokritou (DIKO): There is no time to discuss the bill.

  • Nikos Christodoulides: Aim at five-party the announcement of the resumption of talks
  • Dialogue has begun: When and how will crossings open?
  • We said ‘yes’ to the green passport
  • Causes blood clots: The J&J vaccine on ice for preventative reasons
  • Coronavirus: Cases rising, hospitals at their limits

Main News

FM: Nicosia aiming for announcement declaring resumption of talks

Alithia, Haravgi, Phileleftheros, Politis
Negotiations Process

OVERVIEW

Foreign Minister Nicos Christodoulides said Tuesday that the GC side will be participating in the informal summit to be held in Geneva at the end of the month with the aim of securing an announcement declaring the resumption of talks from where they left off in Crans-Montana, Alithia reports.

Speaking to CyBC, Christodoulides said the proposal for a two-state solution that may be tabled by Turkey and the TC side will not be up for discussion, Alithia reports. Christodoulides noted that the GC side is continuing to prepare for all possible scenarios, clarifying however that it will not be making its proposals public ahead of the summit. The paper adds that Christodoulides said the matter of hydrocarbons will not dominate discussions in Geneva.

Philleftheros reports that Christodoulides on Tuesday met with EU ambassadors to Cyprus and explained the importance of EU participation in Geneva, which is still up the air. The paper reports that Christodoulides said EU participation at the upcoming summit is particularly important given Turkey’s pursuit of a positive agenda with the EU.

Phileleftheros adds that Christodoulides told the European diplomats that Nicosia views solution frameworks such as a confederation or two states as not up for discussion, highlighting that the discussion must pertain to all points of the Guterres Framework. Christodoulides told his interlocutors that Nicosia accepts political equality as it is defined in relevant UN resolutions and reports, and stressed that the claim for sovereign equality is unacceptable since it points to the recognition of a separate state in the north and is therefore outside the scope of a bizonal, bicommunal federation (BBF), Phileleftheros reports.

The dailies report on an announcement by the office of the TC leader Ersin Tatar that said he would table his proposal for two states and sovereign equality during the Geneva summit. The dailies add that Tatar has also extended an invitation to TC parties to accompany him to Geneva, though responses remain unclear. Politis reports that the invitation was extended against a backdrop of strong criticism from opposition parties, and particularly from CTP, over Tatar’s insistence on a two-state solution.

Alithia reports that Turkish Foreign Minister Melvut Cavusoglu is set to visit the north on Thursday, when Cavusoglu is also scheduled to meet with Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias in Ankara. Politis reports that the meeting between the two Foreign Ministers will feature discussions on exploratory talks, the Cyprus problem, the regional situation and maritime zones. The paper reports that Turkey is expected to raise anew the matter of organising a conference on the Eastern Mediterranean, while discussion might also touch on the possibility of a meeting between the Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis.

Politis reports that matters relating to the Eastern Mediterranean were also on the agenda of the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken who has been holding contacts in Brussels since Tuesday, ahead of which, the paper reports, Blinken held a phone conversation with Cavusoglu.

KEY ACTORS
Christodoulides
>>
At 5+1, GC side will aim to secure an announcement declaring the resumption of talks from where they left off in Crans-Montana
>> Two-state solution proposal that may be tabled by Turkey and the TC side will not be up for discussion


Bicommunal committee on health working on reopening of crossings

Alithia, Cyprus Mail, Haravgi, Phileleftheros, Politis
CBMs

OVERVIEW

The GC co-chair of the bicommuncal technical committee on health Leonidas Phylactou said Tuesday that the committee is working towards establishing a set of epidemiological criteria that would allow the gradual easing of restrictions at crossings, the dailies report.

The news regarding the committee’s efforts to facilitate a reopening of crossings first emerged through statements issued by the TC leader Ersin Tatar’s spokesperson Berna Celik Dogruyol, who said the committee had been instructed to draw up a road map for the reopening of checkpoints as soon as possible. Phileleftheros notes that Dogruyol referred to the committee as bilateral rather than bicommunal. Politis reports that Dogruyol said the committee had already secured agreement on the matter of crossings, but the paper notes that this is not the case for the time being. Politis also states that Dogruyol’s reference to the committee as bilateral is indicative of Tatar’s efforts to upgrade the north’s role.

Dogruyol also said the matter of crossings was discussed during the meeting between the two sides’ chief negotiators and the UN Secretary General’s (UNSG) special representative Elizabeth Spehar on March 19, which Politis reports indicates that the TC side is approaching the issue as a confidence-building measure (CBM).

In statements to the Cyprus News Agency, Phylactou clarified that the committee’s efforts are not focusing on a road map with specific dates for the reopening of crossings but on epidemiological criteria, and it is for this reason that the committee’s last meeting on Monday also saw the participation of epidemiologists from both sides.

Haravgi reports that at least three bicommunal technical committees are quietly and systematically working to find ways of reopening checkpoints. The paper cites a source that said that when convergence is reached on practical aspects of the reopening of crossings, a political decision will follow, allowing restrictions there to be eased. The source said that the most urgent matter for the GC side is finding a way to facilitate the crossing of residents of communities in Tylliria and the enclaved.

The dailies report that the community leaders of Kato and Pano Pyrgos, Pigenia and Mosfili held back on threats that they would escalate measures at checkpoints if a solution to their inability to cross was not found, providing until April 29 for the government to find a permanent solution.

Politis reports that the bicommuncal technical committee on health has since late March been discussing the issue of restoring crossings to pre-pandemic conditions. The paper reports that the discussion is ongoing, with the committee expected to convene over the coming days to continue efforts. Final decisions are expected within April or early May, Politis reports, but the implementation of any decisions by the committee will still require a political decision.

Politis reports that during Monday’s meeting, the GC side tabled specific proposals that could be immediately implemented for the Maronite community, the enclaved, and residents of Tylliria, before allowing a broader normalisation of crossings in a process that will be intricately linked with the epidemiological situation on both sides.

Politis reports that the proposal involved setting up a traffic lights system of evaluation of the epidemiological situation as either red, orange or green, with each scenario to feature different criteria for crossing, such as whether a PCR test will be required or not. Phileleftheros, on the other hand, reports that what is being discussed is to facilitate the crossing of students, patients and workers who can present a negative PCR test.

Talks are also underway among the bicommunal technical committee on economic and commercial matters regarding ways of dealing with effects of the pandemic on the economy. Politis reports that this was a matter that the UNSG Antonio Guterres and the UN in general were pushing to the forefront last March so that coordinated actions could be taken by the two sides.

Sources from the GC side told Politis that matters being discussed among technical committees don’t necessarily need to wrap up before the informal summit to take place in Geneva at the end of the month, but the fact that coordination is being attempted at the level of technical committees provides a positive message ahead of the summit.

Politis reports that the importance of CBMs in Cyprus problem developments will likely be amplified over the coming period, with the period after Geneva to possibly see new CBMs being discussed.


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