HURRIYET- Columnist Oktay Eksi writes on the recent situation on Cyprus and peace talks between Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) President Rauf Denktas and Greek Cypriot leader Glafcos Clerides. A summary of his column is as follows:
All parties involved in the Cyprus issue along with the international community have recently displayed their resolve to reach a permanent settlement on the island. Not only both sides’ efforts but also the dissatisfaction on the part of both nations on the island with the pace of the years-long talks have paved the way for this recent positive atmosphere of discussions concerning the island.
Although significant progress has been made during the Denktas-Clerides direct meetings which have been going on since the beginning of this year, the main problem persist, namely that the two sides have failed to reach a settlement recognizing the existence of two separate states on the island. The Turkish Cypriots are understandably insisting on ‘equal sovereignty.’ In addition, we all know that other interested circles previously presented their solution proposals to both sides. For example, British Special Representative Lord David Hannay made significant statements on the issue during an interview with Turkish journalist Mehmed Ali Birand back in June: ‘Let’s forget about the current structure on the island. Let’s establish two separate states which will voluntarily relinquish some of their authority to a joint ‘partnership state.’ These two states should either be constituent or component states. They will be masters of their own houses. Both the Turkish and Greek Cypriots will be represented in Brussels.’
In addition, Denktas and Clerides have reportedly come to see eye-to-eye on a number of pivotal security issues. For example, they agreed that no armed forces would be deployed on the island, with the exception of security forces. These views are also shared by circles close to UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan. Even the international community is more hopeful than ever before. Although the two leaders haven’t as yet reached a settlement on such sensitive issues as the concept of ‘equal sovereignty,’ or ‘demands of rights for immovable assets,’ we can’t deny that the status quo on the island is full of new hopes and promises for the Turkish side.
I wonder if Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit, who altered the fate of the Turkish Cypriots in 1974 with a Peace Operation, could take advantage of these conditions to change the island’s future one more time and moreover improve Turkey’s relations with the EU.
SOURCE: OFFICE OF THE PRIME MINISTER, DIRECTORATE GENERAL OF PRESS AND INFORMATION