The north will be the new Gibraltar

Sir,
The north will not be the new Asia Minor but the new Gibraltar. Spain still claims Gibraltar on the grounds that the indigenous population was expelled 300 years ago by the British. Britain and Spain hoped to find a solution when Spain joined the EU. However, they failed, but as the interest of the millions of British and Spanish citizens outweighed the interest of the thousands of Gibraltar, they decided that this issue would not hamper their relationship. Now, as long as Gibraltar implements EU laws, the question of sovereignty is sidestepped.

In the future, the north will probably have the same status as Gibraltar in the EU. As a long as the authorities there implement EU law, every one will turn a blind eye to its legal status.

The crucial point is that whereas before May 1, 2004, Turkey had a strong negotiating position, namely, agree to concessions to the Turkish Cypriots otherwise Cyprus will join the EU as a divided island, now it is in a weak position because Turkey will be the poorest country in the EU but with the highest voting rights. Many do not want Turkey to join. Turkey will not be in a position to demand concessions and hence there will be no restrictions to the free movement of people or any exceptions to the European Human Rights Conventions.

In the 1950s, our best policy would have been to do nothing. The British policy of holding onto a handful of colonies was unsustainable. Britain would have granted independence with no Greek or Turkish Guarantees.

Similarly, are best position now is do nothing, i.e. we should not accept any ‘solution’ to the Cyprus problem.
Panos Gregory, Croydon

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