Was He Successful?

MILLIYET- Columnist Sami Kohen comments on the recent visit of UN Secretary- General Kofi Annan to Cyprus. A summary of his column is as follows:
After UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan’s recent visit to Cyprus, the first question which comes to mind is, was he successful? To evaluate this, we have to remember his words and attitude before visiting the island. In his own view, he came to the island to encourage both sides and to speed up the blocked negotiations. Annan told observers not to expect a miracle from him, and that he didn’t have any magic wand.
What happened? With Annan’s efforts, the obstacles in the dialogues have been removed. Both sides have agreed to continue the negotiations process with new approaches. At first glance this could be seen as a small success, but it is an important step on the Cyprus issue. It would be wrong to say that Annan returned from the island empty-handed.
The secretary-general yesterday identified two sticking points, namely the hoped-for deadline and how the issues are approached and defined.
Annan made a fierce effort, but he was unable to get an answer from Turkish Cypriot President Denktas. In this situation, it is clear that the talks will continue after the June deadline. It’s not even assured that even over a longer period the two sides could reach an agreement.
How do the sides differ in framing the issue? For Denktas the main issue is sovereignty. Which means that the Turkish side first wants to solve this problem and then to move on to the others. For his part, Greek Cypriot leader Clerides says the opposite. This is the stalemate that has existed for four months. This is clearly why the negotiations are blocked. Annan tried to got the negotiations going by telling the two sides to discuss both the problem of sovereignty and ‘specific problems’ together. Can Annan’s efforts bring forth a change on the island? Almost every method imaginable has been used on the island to find a solution. Annan’s method is nothing new.

SOURCE: OFFICE OF THE PRIME MINISTER, DIRECTORATE GENERAL OF PRESS AND INFORMATION