LOCAL reaction to the UN’s latest report on the Cyprus problem was divided into two halves yesterday. The government and its partners found the report drafted by UN Undersecretary-general for Political Affairs Sir Kieran Prendergast “objective” after his tour of the region last May.
Opposition party DISY said the report was nothing but disappointing, highlighting the lack of any real development while stressing the need for a speedy solution.
Government Spokesman Kypros Chrysostomides said the government considered Prendergast’s briefing of the UN Security Council as satisfactory, noting that it objectively reflected the positions of the Greek Cypriot side expressed to the UN official.
He said it was obvious that the UN Secretary-general Kofi Annan kept all possibilities of resuming negotiations on the Cyprus problem open, adding that the Greek Cypriot side would make every effort “to build common ground” that would allow the commencement of full-scale negotiations.
“The Secretary-general’s good offices remain at the disposal of the parties and this is the beginning and not the end of this effort,” said Chrysostomides.
Regarding the positions of Security Council members, the spokesman noted “the benign stance of the United Kingdom”. He added that only the US said the UN solution plan for a Cyprus settlement was good and balanced, while all the other countries referred to the concerns of the Greek Cypriot side while “the majority of the members called for the respect” of UN resolutions.
Chrysostomides also noted that Prendergast had adopted the position of the Greek Cypriot side regarding the need to prepare any new initiative carefully. The Undersecretary-general had warned the Security Council that it would be inadvisable to launch a new initiative prematurely. He also said the UN fully respected the results of the referenda on the Annan plan and recognised the necessity to take into consideration the Greek Cypriot concerns that led to the rejection of the UN plan.
Chrysostomides said the government was concerned about Prendergast’s reference to the existence of a wide gap on substance between the two sides.
He report referred to Turkey’s disappointment over the non-adoption of the UN Secretary-general’s report last May calling for a lift of the ‘isolation’ of Turkish Cypriots. “This proves that the present aim of Turkey is to politically upgrade the regime and not to solve the Cyprus problem,” said Chrysostomides.
Prendergast informed the Security Council that Annan was “surprised and disappointed that the Council had not reacted to the report or last year’s developments”.
He also advised the Greek Cypriot side to prepare a “prioritised and exhaustive list of concrete proposals for negotiation… because it is very hard to address a long list of concerns in an ordered way if they are expressed without modulation or indication of their relative importance”.
The Government Spokesman interpreted the report as not requesting an exhaustive list of priorities, saying this would only be expected within the framework of a new initiative. He added: “This is wholly logical and reflects the methodology of negotiations. It seems the Secretary-general is aware of this methodology, that it would be illogical to set out final positions before the start of negotiations. What would we negotiate then?”
Government partner AKEL said the report had positive aspects. Party spokesman Andros Kyprianou said report showed that the UN understood the need for changes and the careful preparation of any new initiative.
But DISY leader Nicos Anastassiades said the situation was disappointing as the report highlighted the wide gap in the views of the two sides and the UN’s reluctance to start new talks. He accused others of trying to beautify the report.
“You cannot try to beautify something which only raises discouragement and disappointment,” he said. “Shouldn’t all this concern us,” he added.
Anastassiades said Greek Cypriots did not have the luxury of time on their side. He warned that the Turkish Cypriots would not suffer from a non-solution because it meant the occupation army would remain and exploitation of Greek Cypriot property could continue on a daily basis.
“The majority of parties and the President must be concerned about what we can do to get out of this deadlock and passage of time, which cuts deeper the lines of occupation,” he said.
