Varosha move provocative, Pompeo says

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has said that the Turkish  move in reopening part of the fenced-off area of Varosha is provocative and inconsistent with UN Security Council resolutions.

According to the US State Department`s Spokesperson Morgan Ortagus “Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo spoke with Republic of Cyprus (ROC) Foreign Minister Nikos Christodoulides today.  Secretary Pompeo and Foreign Minister Christodoulides discussed actions taken by the “Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus” to reopen part of the fenced-off area of Varosha”.

She said that the Secretary “expressed deep concern and noted such a move was provocative and inconsistent with UN Security Council Resolutions 550 and 789 and not conducive to a return to settlement talks”.

“The Secretary urges a reversal of the re-opening and welcomed the UN Security Council’s session and presidential statement on Varosha on October 9.  The United States continues to support a comprehensive settlement to reunify the island as a bizonal, bicommunal federation, which would benefit all Cypriots and the entire region” she added.

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.