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BRITAIN can help deliver "an historic opportunity" to bring a peaceful settlement to the political crisis which has divided the island of Cyprus for almost six decades in talks in Geneva next week.
Speaking exclusively to the Sunday Express, the President of Turkish North Cyprus Ersin Tatar has urged Boris Johnson’s government to get behind his plan for a two-state solution which he will propose at the talks. He believes that after Brexit freed Britain from the EU it can now fulfill its role as a neutral guarantor for the eastern Mediterranean island, ensuring that both Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots are treated in a balanced way.
And Whitehall sources have told the Sunday Express that UK ministers are considering officially recognising North Cyprus as an independent country.
A resolution to the problem would help the 300,000 Turkish Cypriots in Britain whose country is currently not recognised and would see direct flights to it allowed for the first time.
Thousands of British citizens in Northern Cyprus would also be able to come and go more easily while it could become a popular holiday destination along with the south.
At one point in the Brexit negotiations, British citizens living in Northern Cyprus were threatened with arrest and fines if they crossed over into the south as EU leaders tried to put pressure on the UK for a deal.
A deal would also potentially bring a long-term agreement on the UK’s two military bases in Cyprus.
The island has been divided since 1964 when ethnic conflict forced Turkish Cypriots to withdraw into enclaves for their safety.
Then in 1974, a Greek Cypriot coup aimed at Greece’s annexation led to Turkey’s military intervention as a guarantor power.
The Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) was officially founded in 1983.
Since then many attempts have been made to create a federal solution on the island with the last one brokered by former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan in 2004 rejected in a referendum by the Greek Cypriots but supported by the Turkish Cypriots.
Recently former foreign secretary Jack Straw admitted that it had been a mistake to subsequently allow Cyprus to become a member of the EU until the issue was resolved.
President Tatar, whose election last year initiated the new round of talks, said: “We don’t want to waste time any longer. All these years we have been wasting valuable time.”
He pointed out that the discovery of oil reserves around the island had only served to increase the tensions.
He said: “They [the Greek Cypriots] pray for time because they believe all these years that Turkey will change its priorities, give up and pull out.
www.express.co.uk
Speaking exclusively to the Sunday Express, the President of Turkish North Cyprus Ersin Tatar has urged Boris Johnson’s government to get behind his plan for a two-state solution which he will propose at the talks. He believes that after Brexit freed Britain from the EU it can now fulfill its role as a neutral guarantor for the eastern Mediterranean island, ensuring that both Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots are treated in a balanced way.
And Whitehall sources have told the Sunday Express that UK ministers are considering officially recognising North Cyprus as an independent country.
A resolution to the problem would help the 300,000 Turkish Cypriots in Britain whose country is currently not recognised and would see direct flights to it allowed for the first time.
Thousands of British citizens in Northern Cyprus would also be able to come and go more easily while it could become a popular holiday destination along with the south.
At one point in the Brexit negotiations, British citizens living in Northern Cyprus were threatened with arrest and fines if they crossed over into the south as EU leaders tried to put pressure on the UK for a deal.
A deal would also potentially bring a long-term agreement on the UK’s two military bases in Cyprus.
The island has been divided since 1964 when ethnic conflict forced Turkish Cypriots to withdraw into enclaves for their safety.
Then in 1974, a Greek Cypriot coup aimed at Greece’s annexation led to Turkey’s military intervention as a guarantor power.
The Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) was officially founded in 1983.
Since then many attempts have been made to create a federal solution on the island with the last one brokered by former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan in 2004 rejected in a referendum by the Greek Cypriots but supported by the Turkish Cypriots.
Recently former foreign secretary Jack Straw admitted that it had been a mistake to subsequently allow Cyprus to become a member of the EU until the issue was resolved.
President Tatar, whose election last year initiated the new round of talks, said: “We don’t want to waste time any longer. All these years we have been wasting valuable time.”
He pointed out that the discovery of oil reserves around the island had only served to increase the tensions.
He said: “They [the Greek Cypriots] pray for time because they believe all these years that Turkey will change its priorities, give up and pull out.
Britain urged to use Brexit freedoms to recognise North Cyprus
BRITAIN can help deliver "an historic opportunity" to bring a peaceful settlement to the political crisis which has divided the island of Cyprus for almost six decades in talks in Geneva next week.
