ANKARA (AA) - TRNC Foreign Minister & Deputy Prime Minister Serdar Denktas said on Wednesday that the blockade against TRNC was not lifted as expected, and the isolation of TRNC is still going on.
Speaking to a group of journalists in Ankara, Denktas said that a counter strategy should be developed against Greek Cypriot administration which issue unwarranted law suits against Turks regarding property rights.
Underlining that TRNC was against the withdrawal of Turkish troops from the island before the solution of the (Cyprus) problem, Denktas said that ``if Turkey withdraws even one squad as a sign of goodwill before a settlement, this will mean acceptance of the Greek Cypriot claim (that Cyprus problem is one of Turkey`s occupation).
When asked what was their expectation from Turkey, Denktas stressed that ``it should be clearly indicated that the counterpart of Papadopoulos (Greek Cypriot leader) is Talat (TRNC President)``. Denktas noted that TRNC was opposed to the idea of Turkish PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan`s having even a `brief` meeting with Papadopolous. -FREE TRADE ZONE-
Pointing out to the negative stance of Greek Cypriot side towards the resumption of Cyprus talks, Denktas stressed that Turkish Cypriots would not wait forever for the lifting of the embargo, adding that if there will be no solution at all, they may transform TRNC into a ``free trade zone`` as an alternative.
Referring to the recent remarks of German, Russian and US leaders about Cyprus, Denktas said ``words are not enough, we want to see concrete results.``
Denktas added that EU would only act fairly ``if it urges the Greek Cypriot side to accept free trade as it urges Turkey to sign the additional protocol (that extends Turkey`s customs deal to new members of EU).
(֓-ULG)
2005-05-18