We need to wake up to the reality of a solution

Two recent articles (‘Most Turkish Cypriots support a two state solution’, September 10) and (‘The status quo suits everyone just fine’, September 20) only confirms that both Cypriot communities want separation.

Turkey is not going to join the EU, as most EU citizens and states want a “privileged partnership” rather than full EU membership. Former French President Valery Giscard D’estaing once said: “admitting Turkey into the EU would be the end of the EU as we know it”.

The carrot offered by the Republic of Cyprus and Greece to Turkey, by saying ‘pull your troops and settlers out of Cyprus and you can join the EU’ is no longer valid. How can they join the EU when EU power brokers France and Germany do not want them? 

What is needed here is mutual acceptance of one another with land swaps and compensation for both communities. As it stands, the Republic of Cyprus controls 63% of total area of Cyprus and the Turkish Cypriots control some 37%.

A 70-30% land formula would be more fairer on the Greek Cypriot side, say the return of Varosha and Morphou in return for recognition. If a two state solution can exist in Ireland – i.e. the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland – I do not see why it cannot happen in Cyprus. The international community is not pushing the two to unite.

As Greek Cypriots we have to realise that the Turks are not going away and in fact they are bringing in more and more mainland settlers into the north to stamp their authority and eventually demographically outnumber the Greek Cypriots in the south.

The question on many Greek Cypriots lips is why aren’t we doing the same in matching them?

George K. Georgiou,
Australia

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.