EUROPEAN Commission President Romano Prodi said yesterday the UN plan was a promising turn of events and urged the two sides not to let the opportunity slip.
Speaking before the European Parliament in Strasbourg, Prodi reiterated that the EU preferred a unified Cyprus to join the Union, stressing, however, that according to the decisions of the December 1999 Helsinki summit, a settlement of the Cyprus problem was not a prerequisite for the island’s accession.
“The EU has already said that it is ready to take on board any comprehensive settlement and accommodate the terms of the settlement in the accession negotiations with Cyprus,” Prodi said.
He added: “This is a promising turn of events and we call on the parties not to let slip this historic opportunity.”
Concerning Turkey, which argues Cyprus must join when it joins the Union, Prodi said it had made progress in preparing for entry, adding that it still had “shortcomings”.
“It will be up to the Copenhagen European Council to take a decision” on the next stage regarding Turkey, Prodi said.
European Union Commissioner for enlargement Guenther Verheugen on Monday warned member states to prepare for the possibility of admitting Cyprus before a settlement of the problem.
Verheugen told EU foreign ministers that a non-solution scenario was an option, given the Turkish side’s view that time limitations could not permit a solution in time for the Copenhagen summit on December 12.
According to EU diplomatic sources, Verheugen believes EU leaders will decide to invite Cyprus to join the Union and attach a protocol providing that the acquis communautaire would apply in the northern part of the island without further negotiations, once Cyprus was reunited.
The European commissioner said the settlement of the Cyprus problem should be resolved without linking it to Turkey’s EU aspirations.
During the debate, no member state raised any reservations to Verheugen’s comments, diplomatic sources said.
According to reports. The general consensus from the discussion was that the EU would accept Cyprus at Copenhagen, irrespective of a political settlement.
Greek Foreign Minister George Papandreou said efforts to resolve the problem would continue after Copenhagen if a settlement was not reached now.
Papandreou said the EU should give Turkey a date for accession negotiations, but admitted the general view was that the EU was more likely to give Turkey a ‘date for a date’.
The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.
