BY BERIL DEDEOGLU
STAR - Last weekend's presidential election on Cyprus, no matter what part it was on, was highly important for the island's future. All elections on Cyprus are political and show differences of opinion between opposing sides.
The voters lost their faith that Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) President Mehmet Ali Talat's constructive negotiations would prove capable of ending the country's isolation.
What happens next isn't very confusing. New TRNC President Dervis Eroglu, with the support of Democrat Party leader Serdar Denktas, will continue the negotiations with the Greek Cypriot administration, albeit half-heartedly.
Officially, Turkey's attitude is in sync with Talat. No matter what happens, Turkey insists that the Cypriot Turks not quit the bargaining table and face a backlash. Let's not forget how back in 2004, the Cypriot Turks approved the Annan plan for the island's reunification, while Cypriot Greeks rejected it. In this situation, we can believe that Eroglu won't break from Turkey's reconciliation policy. But that does little to answer our questions about his main thrust.
If the TRNC's new negotiating delegation takes an attitude in line with Ankara's 'constructive uncertainty' stance, then Eroglu won't be able to keep his campaign promises. But some power brokers in Turkey argue that the uncertainty stance will yield nothing. Before the elections, it was said that Turkey supported both Talat and Eroglu from different sides, so Eroglu's policy may depend on giving the impression that he could leave the table, instead of convincing the other side and or having them dropped by the wayside. For now it seems impossible to predict whether the Greek side will be ruffled by the possibility of the Turkish side leaving the table.