The goal for 2017 is to bequeath our children a reunited country, where Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots can live in peace and stability and feel not only safe but proud, President Nicos Anastasiades said in his new year’s address on Saturday.
In his pre-recorded televised speech, Anastasiades also thanked the people for their contribution to the economic turnaround completed in 2016, when Cyprus successfully exited its three-year bailout agreement with international creditors.
“Today, we are in a position to face our future without a guardian, standing firmly on our own two feet, without supervision by third parties,” he said, referring to the European Union and the International Monetary Fund.
“We have achieved what should be self-evident for every modern country: to meet our own needs by ourselves. All indicators suggest that we are exiting the financial crisis, that brought us to the brink of total destruction three years ago, even stronger.”
At the same time, Anastasiades added, substantial reform had been enacted, including an overhaul of the country’s social welfare policy through the introduction of the Guaranteed Minimum Income scheme, education reform, reducing military service and modernising the National Guard.
But the main focus of the president’s speech was the Geneva talks in line with comments by government spokesman Nicos Christodoulides earlier in the day that the president planned to start regularly informing the public on the latest developments in the Cyprus negotiations.
Indeed, in his speech’s section on the talks which are about to enter their most crucial phase on January 9, Anastasiades highlighted the momentous days that lie ahead and called for unity. The Geneva talks will end with a multi-party conference to address security and guarantees on January 12.
“Over the last 19 months we have conducted the most ambitious negotiation effort of the last few years, in order to find a permanent and viable solution that will reunite our country and rid it of occupying troops,” he said.
“Our country’s membership of the European Union and the need to adapt key ingredients of the solution to the acquis communautaire have been decisive in achieving significant convergences.”
Through tough negotiations, all basic human rights have been safeguarded for all Cyprus citizens, he added.
“To mention but a few examples of what has been achieved, among other things, every citizen will be able to move freely anywhere in Cyprus with no limitations, and everyone will have the right to choose where the live, buy property, and work or set up a business,” the president said.
“We have also ensured that the country’s demography on day one [following a solution] will reflect, with minor divergence, the demography of the Republic of Cyprus in 1960, while introducing such safeguards that disallow the future manipulation of Cyprus’ demography through outside intervention.”
This same negotiation had also left no doubt that the evolved country would have a single sovereignty, a single international personality, and a single nationality, Anastasiades said, which are the indispensable elements of a healthy federation, as described in international law.
Despite the “significant progress”, he added, it was not his intention to create an atmosphere of “excessive euphoria”.
“Significant differences remain on key issues touching on fundamental principles of a solution to the Cyprus problem,” the president said.
“It’s going to be a tough negotiation, which will continue in the coming days, in January in Geneva. From January 9 to 11 all outstanding issues will be discussed, focusing on territory, and on the 12th, after maps have been tabled, we will proceed to the next phase of the dialogue, which is none other than the issues of security and guarantees.”
This is the first time that Turkey will be put on the spotlight and forced to prove whether its public rhetoric regarding its desire to solve the Cyprus problem will translate into a specific proposal that respects international legality and is consistent with the Republic of Cyprus’ capacity as a member state of the European Union, he said.
Until the Geneva sessions, talks will continue in Cyprus between the two sides’ negotiators, with sporadic meetings between the leaders. Christodoulides had said that Anastasiades will meet with Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci on Wednesday, and, if required, an additional tete-a-tete between the two leaders will follow on Saturday.
Anastasiades has already called a National Council session for Thursday, and also plans to find the time to brief the Holy Synod ahead of his departure to Switzerland.
With regard to which party leaders will join the Geneva delegation, Christodoulides said all of them, with the exception of nationalist Elam’s Christos Christou, had submitted their travel documents for the Geneva trip, as requested.
However, he added, their final responses are expected after Thursday’s National Council.
Despite the good will with which he goes to Geneva, Anastasiades warned, remarks and views by which one side tries to impose its will on the other are “not helpful”.
“An approach of imposing one side on the other will not lead to a solution, but will unfortunately maintain the unacceptable status quo, and we all agree that time will continue to work against both Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots,” he argued.
“I want to be clear that any insistence on outdated ideas that do not safeguard the independence and sovereignty of our country will most likely not lead to a solution, with unfortunate consequences for both communities.”
The government goes to Geneva, hopefully with the support of all political parties and in a climate of unity, considering the close and flawless cooperation with the Greek government, fully confident and resolute, supporting its views and arguments on solid political, legal, and scientific foundations, Anastasiades assured.
“I want to wish that 2017 can be the year we turn our internal conflicts to unity, negativism to constructiveness, and the year that we celebrate the reunification of our country,” he said.
