Cavusoglu says gas proceeds should fund settlement

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said on Thursday that proceeds from the sale of the island’s natural gas should be used to fund reunification, reiterating that Turkish Cypriots also had rights in Cyprus’ natural resources.

“There must be a joint decision on where to spend the revenues,” he said. “It is natural for the revenues to be used for the cost of a solution but this decision must be made jointly.”

Cypriot Foreign Minister Ioannis Kasoulides drew the ire of hardline parties last week after he suggested that part of the proceeds from the sale of Cyprus’ natural gas could be used to fund the solution.

They said Turkey, which invaded the island in 1974 and still occupies 37 per cent of its territory, should foot the bill.

President Nicos Anastasiades later said that a small part of the revenues could be used if necessary to avoid the introduction of taxes.

The cost of a solution has not been calculated yet. World Bank and International Monetary Fund experts were working to that end.

On Wednesday, Cavusoglu blamed the Greek Cypriot side for dragging its feet in the reunification process and called for a multilateral conference.

“We want the United Nations to meet with the five countries (Cyprus, Turkey, breakaway Turkish Cypriot state, and guarantors Britain and Greece) and come to a settlement,” the Turkish foreign minister said. “We are not responsible for this delay. The Greek Cypriot side is responsible for this delay.”

To speed up the procedure the meeting must take place, he added.

A multilateral meeting with the participation of the breakaway state is not something that the Greek Cypriot side would accept since it would imply its recognition.

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.