Turkey’s visa obligations, security and guarantees, focus of president’s meetings in Brussels

President Nicos Anastasiades will stress at the European Council in Brussels the need for Turkey to fulfill its obligations as regards the visa liberalization benchmarks towards all member states, as a prerequisite for any decision in the future, Government Spokesman Nicos Christodoulides has said.
In statements to journalists in Brussels on Thursday, Christodoulides said that the president would also discuss with his counterparts the issue of security and guarantees relating to the Cyprus problem.

Christodoulides added that the European Council would discuss migration, visa liberalisation for Turkey, Syria and Russia, while there would be a first briefing by the British Prime Minister on how the UK would proceed with Brexit.

On the sidelines of the Council, he said, Anastasiades would discuss the Cyprus issue, focusing on the chapter of security and guarantees. He recalled that the president raised this issue during the EPP Summit in Maastricht with the President of the Commission, the President of the European Council , the German Chancellor, and the Prime Minister of Finland.

The spokesman said that the president was satisfied with the response of his interlocutors about the proposal on the table of the Cyprus talks, regarding the chapter on security and guarantees.

He also said that on Wednesday evening, Anastasiades held a long and very constructive meeting with the Greek prime minister, during which they agreed on their coordination in relation to their international contacts on the Cyprus issue, and discussed in extent the issue of security and guarantees.

Asked whether Cyprus was satisfied with the European Commission`s statement about Turkey`s obligation to fulfill the criteria for the Turkish visa towards all member states, the spokesman said that the Commission`s declaration was in the right direction.

He reiterated that the president would explain to the EU leaders Cyprus` positions on the matter in more detail.

The overwhelming majority of the EU members states, he said, share Cyprus` positions and the need for Turkey to fulfill its obligations towards all member states.

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.