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Main News
Cavusoglu asks UNSC to recognise TC sovereignty
Kathimerini, Phileleftheros
Negotiations Process
OVERVIEW
Phileleftheros reports that in a letter addressed to the five permanent members of the UN Security Council (UNSC), with a copy also sent to the UN Secretary General (UNSG), Turkey formally demanded that the equal international status and the sovereignty of the TC community is recognised and adopted by the UNSC before formal negotiations on the Cyprus problem resume.
The paper writes that in the two-page letter, dated May 24, Turkish Foreign Minister Melvut Cavusoglu is essentially calling for a change to the current solution basis into a two-state solution.
Phileleftheros reports that a similar letter was drafted by TC leader Ersin Tatar for the UNSG Antonio Guterres dated May 18. The paper reports that Tatar’s six-page letter deals with historical details of the Cyprus conflict with particular emphasis on 1963, and constitutes a similar call for the recognition of the north. Phileleftheros reports that both letters serve as a further push toward the ‘vision’ first outlined during the informal five-party summit held in Geneva in late April. The vision, the paper writes, is based on the recognition of the north as having equal international status allowing future relations between two independent states on matters such as property, security, border arrangements and EU relations.
Cavusoglu’s letter, which Phileleftheros suggests carries more weight, notes that the “mutual recognition of the equal sovereignty will assist sides in bridging the chasm between them, to create hopes for the future, providing a stable starting point for a new process toward a long-term and viable solution.” Phileleftheros reports that Cavusoglu called for a new negotiations framework which will be based on a bottom-up approach that takes into consideration the realities on the island. The paper writes that the bottom-up approach Cavusoglu refers to is an approach mentioned by Guterres in Geneva and which was first thought up by Britain to promote a confederal solution model, since it points to a model in which sovereignty rests with the bottom (the sovereign states), with the central government dealing only with whatever is left.
Phileleftheros reports that in his letter to the UNSC, Cavusoglu said an adoption of his suggestion by the UNSC would ensure that both sides are protected in the event that negotiations fail or any agreement reached collapses. The paper reports that Cavusoglu referred to his proposal as a win-win solution that would also contribute to regional peace and prosperity. Phileleftheros’ take on the letter is that Turkey is preparing the ground for partition by seeking the protection of a UNSC decision that would ensure the TC side’s international recognition.
At the same time, Phileleftheros reports that the UK Foreign Office is also attempting through contacts to persuade the US to not be so absolute in its support of a bizonal, bicommunal federal (BBF) solution. Meanwhile, the paper cites information to report that through contacts held by the UNSG’s Special Envoy Jane Holl Lute, the UN is also attempting to pressure Greece to show more compromise.
Regarding the ‘British formula’ that has been a source of discussion in GC media, Kathimerini reports that diplomatic sources said that it an attempt to take into consideration both the TC side’s concerns for sovereignty and political equality and the GC side’s concerns regarding the viability of a federal state with a TC positive vote. The paper reports that the ‘formula’ stems from the GC side’s idea for a decentralised BBF, and remains within a BBF framework as a middle ground between a two-state solution and a decentralised federation.
Kathimerini reports that while Nicosia is still working on clarifying when Lute will be visiting the island for contacts, with her visit to either cut it close to the EUCO scheduled for later this month or to follow the summit, Nicosia is also expecting a visit from the UN Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations Jean-Pierre Lacroix within the coming weeks.
Kathimerini reports among the Cyprus problem developments expected to take place in the coming period are also the reports to be submitted to the UNSC by the UNSG on UNFICYP and his good offices mission in Cyprus. The UNSC is also set to be briefed on the situation along the UN Buffer Zone by the UNSG’s Special Representative Elizabeth Spehar on July 16 ahead of the UNSC’s discussion on the renewal of the UNFICYP mandate. In the relevant report, Kathimerini reports that the UN is expected to note the difficult situation along the Buffer Zone and the tensions seen there, such as the incidents in Deneia and at Nicosia’s Spitfire, in order to highlight the need for a communication mechanism between the military forces of both sides. Regarding the UNSG’s report on his good offices mission, the paper writes that its contents will mainly depend on Lute’s current round of contacts.
Citing sources, Kathimerini reports that expectations for a different outcome than the impasse of the Geneva informal summit are low. The paper reports that realistically, a second informal summit will not be held before the end of September when the UN General Assembly is set to take place in New York with all five parties to participate.
At the moment, Kathimerini reports that with the absence of substantive Cyprob talks, all eyes are set on the meeting to be held between the Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and the Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Brussels on June 14 on the sidelines of the NATO Summit. Also of interest is the meeting to be held there between Erdogan and the US President Joe Biden.
Kathimerini, citing diplomatic sources, reports that there is a possibility that the two leaders will meet in the presence of Spehar before she departs for New York. The paper reports that after the two leaders participated in a videoconference to finalise the reopening of crossings, government spokesman Kyriakos Koushos said President Nicos Anastasiades reiterated his readiness to discuss other confidence-building measures (CBMs) he has submitted. Regarding the reopening of crossings, Kathimerini reports that it is not a coincidence that crossing points were left at the bottom of both sides’ agenda, since they are mostly used by both sides to score points over the other rather than ways of facilitating reunification.
KEY ACTORS
Cavusoglu (Turkey)
>> In letter to UNSC P5, calls for recognition of equal international status and the sovereignty of TCs before formal negotiations on Cyprob can resume
>> Mutual recognition of equal sovereignty will assist sides in bridging the chasm between the two sides, providing a stable starting point for a new process toward a long-term and viable solution
>> Calls for new negotiations framework which will be based on a bottom-up approach that takes into consideration the realities on the island
>> Adoption by UNSC of equal sovereignty would ensure that both sides are protected in the event that negotiations fail or any agreement reached collapses
Nearly 7,500 use crossings on Friday
Alithia, Cyprus Mail, Haravgi, Phileleftheros, Politis
CBMs
OVERVIEW
Close to 7,500 people used the seven crossings controlled by the Republic after they reopened on Friday, most going to the north, the papers report.
The police spokesperson said 7,455 people used the crossings in the 24 hours up to 6am on Saturday, 3,551 coming from the north and 3,904 going.
The papers also report that a TC official said Saturday that children over six years old must have negative coronavirus tests to be allowed to visit the north, a Turkish Cypriot official said Saturday.
Cenk Soydan, the co-chair of the bicommunal Technical Committee on Health, told the Cyprus News Agency that each side enforced its own rules on the matter and TCs wanted children over six going north to also have a negative test. The Republic allows children under 12 to cross to the south without a test.