Foreign Minister has doubts on counter-declaration
FOREIGN MINISTER George Iacovou said yesterday he doubted that the EU would be able to agree on a contentious counter-declaration to Ankara’s non-recognition of Cyprus before the start of Turkey’s accession negotiations on October 3.
Speaking to reporters after a meeting with DISY leader Nicos Anastassiades, Iacovou said: “I now have very serious doubts on whether a rejoinder can be adopted. Many manoeuvres are needed to achieve the result we want,”
He was referring to Wednesday’s deadlock among the EU 25 on the wording of a response to Ankara’s July 29 statement that signing the customs union protocol with the 10 new member states did not mean recognition of Cyprus.
EU minister have been battling it out this week to find an acceptable compromise, while Cyprus accused EU president Britain of pushing the Turkish agenda on the issue.
Iacovou said the period from now until October 3 would be “quite difficult”.
“But I have confirmed that, always within the spirit of European cooperation, Cyprus is willing to continue to cooperate aiming at the adoption of a counterstatement that will also protect Cyprus’ interests,” Iacovou said.
There were reports on Thursday that an emergency EU meeting might be called to break the deadlock but British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw said he hoped such a meeting could be avoided and urged all involved to push ahead with the October 3 date in spite of the Cyprus dilemma.
Britain came under heavy fire in Nicosia over its stance on Turkey and was accused by the government of not being impartial. Yesterday Athens joined the fray when Greece’s foreign ministry spokesman George Koumoutsakos said no EU presidency should exploit its position in order to advance purely national political choices.
“The principle of objectivity is fundamental for the successful exercise of the mission of each and every EU presidency,” he said. “I fear that the developments of the past 24 hours in the discussion in Brussels on this matter render it necessary to repeat this.
It is self-evident that no (EU) presidency should take advantage of its abilities for the projection of purely national political choices.”
But British High Commissioner Peter Millet yesterday the picture being portrayed of Britain’s stance was erroneous.
“We are making huge efforts to reach an agreement,” he said following a meeting with socialist EDEK leader Yiannakis Omirou.
“Our long-term and short-term objective is to begin the negotiations and so have the opportunity to see changes in Turkey that will be positive for Cyprus, for the EU and for Turkey,” Millet said, adding that this would bring about an opportunity for a solution of the Cyprus problem.
“This, the perception that the presidency is not unbiased is not correct,” he said.
“We will continue our efforts in Brussels and if we have the opportunity we will also discuss it in New York. But we should continue these efforts because this is the collective objective of all member states.”
Omirou said he had expressed his party’s displeasure at Britain’s stance to the High Commissioner. He said he had told Millet that it was unacceptable that Britain seemed, not only to tolerate Turkey’s non-recognition of Cyprus but to encourage it.
He also told Millet that Straw’s comments on Thursday were an insult to the intelligence of the Greek Cypriot people and only served to create an anti-British climate on the island.
Reports yesterday said that Washington had joined London in diplomatic moves to rescue the Turkish accession talks in the face, not only of the Cyprus issue, but the increasing opposition from France and Austria towards Turkish membership.
According to Britain’s Independent, Washington stepped up the pressure on European states when a senior State Department official said, after the talks in Brussels, that it was in the interests of the EU, Turkey and the US that the membership talks go ahead.
The US urged the EU to embrace Turkey. Kurt Volker, the principal deputy assistant secretary of state, said he was “encouraged by the state of play though there is work to be done. It is in the EU’s interests, in Turkey’s interests and in our interests to see accession talks beginning but, clearly, this is a decision for the EU to take forward.”
In Nicosia yesterday the US Charges d’Affaires in Cyprus Jane Zimmerman said: “We believe that Turkey’s accession and the negotiation process and eventually getting Turkey on the path to join the EU is a way to promote the kind of reform that is much needed in Turkey and makes the country a better neighbour and a force for stability in the region rather than leaving the future up in question”.
Zimmerman was speaking after a meeting with the Education Minister. “We strongly support Turkey’s accession into the EU and the negotiation process. At the same time we are not a member of EU but a supporter as a friend of Europe and as a friend of Turkey and of course Cyprus,” she said.
Commenting on the issue of Cyprus’ recognition by Turkey, Zimmerman said this issue rested with the member states of the EU.
??
??
??
??
