Front Page Headlines
‘What will make them stop this?’
A woman’s plea after suffering smoke inhalation from saving 17 dogs from one of this week’s fires.
- Special school: Demolition of school in Kormakitis divides Maronite community
- Coffeeshop: Cyprob not only pressing issue in the world today
- Controversy surrounds halloumi as PDO set to come into effect
Trilateral: They’re looking for a common base in the Turkish formulas of Ecevit
The problems of the President’s strategic agreement.
- ‘Schizophrenic’ politics: The new British FM and the ‘invisible’ Ajay Sharma
- Savvas Iacovides (opinion): The burdensome self-entrapment of the Greek leadership in the clamp of Turko-bizonal
- Andreas S. Angelides (opinion): The 1960 Constitution exists and governs the functioning of the State
- Andreas M. Vasiliou (opinion): Turkish politics will never change
- Yiannakis L. Omyrou (opinion): On Elpidophoros and Anastasiades’ reaction
Price-gouging in construction short-circuiting the market
Fire in the prices of apartments and other development projects.
- Sfairika: Elpidophoros and the kazanti of tactical games
- The SC report on Libya: And a second airplane from Cyprus
Manoeuvre with confederation
They are not dogmatic about two states, the Turks are saying now, who are insisting on recognition in advance. Anastasiades’ ‘road map’ for a decentralised (federation).
- Diplomatic ‘street fights’ in New York over Cyprus
- Elpidophoros was aware of Tatar’s presence
- Nikolas Papadopoulos: DIKO will be in the next government
No relaxation of measures before Christmas
Dominant opinion among the Government is to not put the holiday period at risk.
- The appointment of a representative a lifeboat
- Occupied areas/Turkey: They’re insisting on a two-state solution
- Censorship in Cyprus: Prohibitions are being chronicled
The meeting with the UNSG with partition lurking
The President’s address at the UN General Assembly without a proposal to break the impasse.
- Nacho Sanchez Amor: The preservation of Turkey’s EU accession course necessary for Cyprus
- Technical Committee on Cultural Heritage: The award is for the Cypriot people
Guterres’ riddle
Tomorrow’s informal trilateral on the Cyprus problem without prospects. Question marks on the stance the UN Secretary General will take when faced with the impasse in the Cyprus problem due to the Turkish side’s intransigence. He hasn’t spoken so far. Tomorrow is his time…
- Occupied areas: Reactions over the new fanatic mufti
Main News
Informal New York trilateral to take place on Monday
Alithia, Haravgi, Kathimerini, Phileleftheros, Politis
Negotiations Process
OVERVIEW
The papers report on the trilateral meeting expected to take place in New York on Monday between the UN Secretary General (UNSG) Antonio Guterres and the two leaders, with expectations remaining low.
Kathimerini reports that at the trilateral, President Nicos Anastasiades is expected to table his proposals for a decentralised federation and a return to the 1960 Constitution, with the TC side already appearing to have rejected both. Phileleftheros reports that Nicosia has settled on its strategy, with Anastasiades to propose a decentralised federation through an interim solution. According to Anastasiades’ roadmap, Phileleftheros reports, the first step will be securing a strategic agreement (the interim solution), then returning to the 1960 Constitution, and finally the initiation of negotiations for a final settlement in the form of a decentralised federation.
Kathimerini reports that at the trilateral meeting the UNSG is planning on suggesting the appointment of a special representative that will act as a lifeboat for the Cyprus problem. The paper also reports citing information that Britain is taking the driving seat with its ‘informal ideas’, which are expected to stimulate efforts to find common ground and ultimately to resolve Cyprob. The paper also believes that Britain’s ideas point directly to a confederation and serve Ankara, but also constitute a guide for the UNSG.
Alithia reports that though after the informal five-party summit in Geneva the UNSG had said that the next such meeting will be held in two to three months’ time, we are now five months later and all we will see is an informal trilateral meeting, and one that will fail for the same reasons the five-party summit failed: the Turkish side’s pursuit of a two-state solution and the GC side’s rejection of the past convergences providing for a rotating presidency and a positive TC vote. The paper reports that both sides claim they want a solution, but neither is adopting positions that could persuade the UNSG that there is common ground.
Alithia reports that if the Turkish side remains firm in its support for a two-state solution, then the best result that we can expect from Monday’s trilateral is the avoidance of the announcement of a definitive impasse.
Phileleftheros reports citing well-informed sources that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told Guterres in their recent meeting that what is most important for Turkey is the recognition in advance of the sovereign equality and equal international status of TCs, adding that if these demands are met, then negotiations can begin without a predetermined solution framework. The paper views this as signalling that Turkey is not dogmatically pursuing a two-state solution, but leaves open the possibility of talks reaching agreement on a confederation, federation or two states. The paper writes however that it is nothing more than a strategically since Turkey has not changed any of its positions.
Politis poses the question that since Anastasiades showed through the fiasco with Archbishop Elpidophoros that in times when the Turkish side is hiking up intransigence all political and social contacts with that side must stop, why is he meeting with TC leader Ersin Tatar on Monday instead of adopting with consistency the position taken by DIKO leader Nikolas Papadopoulos and ELAM who want to create political costs for Turkey, including through refusing any meetings with the Turkish side.
Haravgi reports on the positive reaction issued by almost all political parties in response to Anastasiades’ address before the UN General Assembly. AKEL’s Giorgos Koukoumas said Anastasiades’ references to Turkey’s unacceptable pursuit of a two-state solution and its attempts to assimilate the TC community were correct, but said that every international address must be utilised in order to put pressure on Turkey to stop its illegal actions and to call on the international community to do the same. Koukoumas also said that Anastasiades should have submitted proposals that responded to the UNSG’s expectations and not ones that deviate from UN resolutions, such as his proposal for a return to the 1960 Constitution. He added that the immediate goal must be to curb Turkey’s goal of definitively partitioning the island, noting that this requires that the GC side stays consistent in its support for agreements reached and takes persuasive initiatives.
Haravgi reports that on his part, DISY leader Averof Neophytou expressed his satisfaction with Anastasiades’ support for the agreed-upon solution framework and Anastasiades’ clarifications on his proposal for a return to the 1960 Constitution. DIPA said Anastasiades’ speech was to the point, adding that it supports the promoting of powerful confidence-building measures (CBMs).
DIKO leader Nikolas Papadopoulos said we have gotten to the point where we’re fighting to secure the self-evident and this is partly due to our mistakes. He said we must under no circumstances allow the basis of negotiations to change into what Turkey is pursuing. EDEK said a bi-zonal, bicommunal federal (BBF) solution is racist and unacceptable.
KEY ACTORS
Koukoumas (AKEL)
>> Anastasiades’ references to Turkey’s unacceptable pursuit of a two-state solution and its attempts to assimilate the TC community were correct, but every international address must be utilised in order to put pressure on Turkey to stop its illegal actions & call on the international community to do the same
>> Anastasiades should have submitted proposals that responded to the UNSG’s expectations and not ones that deviate from UN resolutions, such as his proposal for a return to the 1960 Constitution
>> The immediate goal must be to curb Turkey’s goal of definitively partitioning the island, which requires that the GC side stays consistent in its support for agreements reached and takes persuasive initiatives
Neophytou (DISY)
>> Satisfied with Anastasiades’ support for the agreed-upon solution framework
DIPA
>> Anastasiades’ speech was to the point
>> Supports the promoting of powerful CBMs
Papadopoulos (DIKO)
>> We have gotten to the point where we’re fighting to secure the self-evident and this is partly due to our mistakes
>> We must under no circumstances allow the basis of negotiations to change into what Turkey is pursuing
EDEK
>> BBF solution is racist and unacceptable