Cyprus House President Demetris Christofias yesterday sent letters to British MPs calling them to exert pressure to stop their government upgrading the breakaway Turkish Cypriot state in the north.
On Monday Britain and Turkey signed a partnership deal to enhance relations that included several provisions to end the so-called isolation of the Turkish Cypriots.
The move has angered the government to the point where it has publicly said it was looking at re-evaluating its relationship with the UK.
Christofias, who is also a presidential candidate, said however that Cyprus should take maintain a close relationship with Britain and try in that way to have the Turkey-Britain protocol changed.
“We must be alert and exercise a preventive policy,” he said, adding that it was clear Britain’s policy was to upgrade the north.
“This is not the first time Britain has created very serious problems for the Republic of Cyprus,” Christofias said.
Greece also added its voice to the protest yesterday when its Foreign Ministry called in British ambassador Simon Gass. “The meeting … was a strong demarche from the Greek side,” a source close to the meeting told Reuters in Athens. “The ambassador assured the Greek side London had not changed its stance on Cyprus and does not recognise any authority other than the Greek Cypriot government.”
The British High Commission made a similar statement in Nicosia on Wednesday. However for the Greek Cypriot side the protocol is being taken at its word.
Included is a provision to work within the UN, the EU and bilaterally to promote “direct” commercial, economic, political and cultural contacts between the UK, the EU and the Turkish Cypriots.
It also proposes that Britain maintains “high-level contacts with the Turkish Cypriot authorities”, and to continue to help the ‘TRNC’ authorities and universities in their attempts to engage with the Bologna process.
George Iacovou, Cyprus` High Commissioner in London told London Greek News yesterday that the agreement would leave its mark on Anglo-Cypriot relations.
Iacovou repeated the government’s complaint on Wednesday that Britain had not informed the Cyprus government beforehand of an agreement that would affect the interests of the island as a whole.
“This action on the part of Britain, to fully align itself with the Turkish positions and pursuits, will of course leave its marks on Cypriot-British relations,” Iacovou said.
Opposition DISY leader Nicos Anastassiades said yesterday he believed Britain was only the beginning and wondered which country would be next to act in the same way.
