The Cyprus negotiations should not be trapped on infertile ground by playing with words, Deputy PM and Foreign Minister Kudret Ozersay has said.
The idea of a loose federation will not change much in the substance of things. The Greek Cypriot leadership may be trying to ensnare the Turkish Cypriot side and the UN in the same barren and interminable negotiating processes, he said.
“Any kind of idea is discussed unofficially of course, but if we are deceived by the loose federation and similar plays on words in the presence of the UN, we will enter into the grip of starting the negotiations from the point they were left off. The Turkish Cypriot side should be careful about this point of view. If by saying loose federation, the Greek Cypriot leadership is trying to cut back the Turkish Cypriots’ effective participation in decision making and rotating presidency which is a sine qua non, this effort is in vain. Negotiating for a partnership based on sharing as long as there is no change of mentality, is only tantamount to wasting of time […]”
He said that the root cause of the problem is that the Greek Cypriot leadership does not want to share the administration and wealth of the island with the Turkish Cypriots. However, federation is a model based on sharing the administration and wealth, he noted. The ‘loose federal’ idea was a bluff, Ozersay warned. The Turkish Cypriots will have even less power and influence under the loose federation model, he said.
“If they want us to abandon political equality, this means that they are making a move towards lifting one of the fundamental parameters. Are they ready to change another parameter of the partnership and negotiate something different? The loose federation which is decorated with plays on words does not show that they are ready for this of course. Even if we share one single power in a federal structure, our effective participation in the decision making and our representation is a sine qua non of course. For this reason, I believe that everybody should be careful of this point of view. If they say that the Turkish Cypriots should be less effective in the decision making, then what is the point of a partnership? […]”.
BRT