Prime Minister Erdogan Leaves For Switzerland

ANKARA - Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan left for Switzerland to join the four-party Cyprus conference on Monday.
Prior to his departure for Switzerland, Erdogan had tete-a-tete meeting with British Ambassador in Ankara Peter Westmacott. The meeting lasted for about 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, an official from the Foreign Ministry said that British Prime Minister Tony Blair sent a message. The official quoted Westmacott as saying that Britain shared Turkey's concerns on ''primary law'' and would do its utmost on the issue.
If the principle of bizonality is to be effective in Cyprus within the EU, a permanent derogation on freedom of movement and settlement in Cyprus would have to be part of EU primary law, and it will need to exclude mainland Greeks as well as Greek Cypriots, Turkish side insists. It will have to be for the two peoples themselves, not the EU by some arbitrary time limit or pre-arranged mechanism, to decide when that derogation is no longer needed. If the derogation is not included in the primary law of the EU, which cannot be changed; an agreement that can be reached in Cyprus can easily be violated with the claim that it should comply with the EU primary law.
TURKISH PRIME MINISTER SIGNALS IMPOSSIBILITY OF MAKING CONCESSIONS OF SINE QUA NON CONDITIONS IN CYPRUS
It was impossible for Turkey to make concessions of sine qua non conditions in Cyprus although Turkey had a Cyprus policy aiming at ''solution in the island'', Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan told a news conference on Monday.
Prior to his departure for Switzerland to join the four-party Cyprus conference, Erdogan told reporters that he believed Cyprus issue would be solved if both sides in the island showed their good will.
Delegations from Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), Greek Cypriot side, Turkey and Greece are trying to reach compromise on several issues in ongoing negotiations in Buergenstock, Switzerland.
Erdogan said, ''I believe this issue will be settled, but one-sided good-will will cause insolubility in the island.''
Noting that he was going to Switzerland to take part in Cyprus negotiations, Erdogan recalled that United Nations (U.N.) Secretary General Kofi Annan, Greek Prime Minister Costas Caramanlis, Turkish Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul, TRNC Prime Minister Mehmet Ali Talat, TRNC Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Serdar Denktas and Greek Cypriot leader Tassos Papadopoulos were currently in Buergenstock.
Erdogan stated that parties would start preliminary negotiations this evening and went on saying, ''these negotiations will continue till the evening of March 31. Preliminary discussions continue. The U.N. has learned demands of not only TRNC, but also the Greek Cypriot side. Quartet meetings continue in Buergenstock to discuss these demands. I will have a bilateral meeting with the Greek prime minister this evening. And, then we will hold quartet meetings and meetings with Annan. All these talks will continue till Wednesday.''
''We hope that we will get the positive result we expect and we will continue the process as planned. Naturally, we still have good will and we continue our efforts with good will. We are determined to continue our efforts till the very end. Our policy aims at solution instead of insolubility. And, our policy depends on good will,'' Erdogan said.
Erdogan added, ''but, it is not possible for us to make concessions of our sine qua non conditions. I think if both sides show good will, this issue will be solved. But, one-sided good-will will naturally cause insolubility. I hope that the Greek Cypriot side will also show the same good will. I think and hope that Greece will also show good will because Greek prime minister signaled such an attitude in our tete-a-tete meeting in Brussels last week. And, I am hopeful when going to Switzerland.''
TRNC and Greek Cypriot side started Cyprus negotiations in the island on February 19 in order to find a fair and lasting solution to Cyprus issue till May 1 on the basis of Annan plan.
According to the Cyprus negotiation road map, two sides were expected to attend a quartet conference together with guarantor powers Turkey and Greece after March 22 to discuss issues on which they could not reach any compromise in their negotiations held in the island.
Delegations from TRNC and Greek Cypriot side will try to reach compromise on several issues in the quartet Cyprus conference to be held in Buergenstock, Switzerland till March 31 with the participation of delegations from guarantor powers Turkey and Greece headed by Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan and Greek Prime Minister Caramanlis.
U.N. Secretary General Annan will fill in the blanks left in the plan if participants can't reach any compromise in quartet meetings, and the text to be formed at the end of all these initiatives will be voted in referenda to be held synchronously in the Turkish and Greek Cypriot sides on April 20.
ISSUES RELATED WITH PRIMARY LAW SHOULD BE REGISTERED IN OFFICIAL DOCUMENTS
ANKARA - Issues related with ''primary law'' in ongoing Cyprus negotiations should be registered in official documents, otherwise reaching an agreement will be meaningless, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan told a news conference on Monday.
Erdogan said, ''we naturally and essentially try to bring onto agenda issues related with primary law in our negotiations. If this issue isn't solved, then all our initiatives will be meaningless. Therefore, European Union (EU) should support our efforts. Issues related with primary law should be registered in official documents. We are still sensitive about this issue and our friends in Switzerland are exerting preliminary efforts related with this issue at the moment.''
Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan stated that he also spoke to U.S. President George Bush by phone last night.
When he was recalled that he would speak to British Ambassador before his departure, Erdogan said, ''he has a message for me and I'm going to get his message.''
If the principle of bizonality is to be effective in Cyprus within the EU, a permanent derogation on freedom of movement and settlement in Cyprus would have to be part of EU primary law, and it will need to exclude mainland Greeks as well as Greek Cypriots, Turkish side insists. It will have to be for the two peoples themselves, not the EU by some arbitrary time limit or pre-arranged mechanism, to decide when that derogation is no longer needed. If the derogations are not included in the primary law of the EU, which cannot be changed; an agreement that can be reached in Cyprus can easily be violated with the claim that it should comply with the EU primary law.
(AA) 29.03.2004