Beware of the “Séance” in Cyprus!..

Yesterday, we discussed the coffee-and-croissant chat between Erdoğan and the leader of the Greek Cypriot administration, Nikos Christodoulides—whom we do not recognize—at the European Political Community Summit in Hungary.

We have more to add to this.

Neither Erdoğan nor the Foreign Minister disclosed the content of this conversation. But the Greek Cypriot leader described it with pleasure.

He stated that he once again shared his views on the resolution of the “problem” as the “Republic of Cyprus” and said that they were “ready to facilitate the strengthening of EU-Turkey relations along with solid and substantive progress towards a solution.” In other words, he was implying: “Give us Cyprus, and we will lift the veto we placed on the negotiations.”!..

He noted that their main goal was the “resumption of substantive negotiations”...

Perhaps what pleased him most was this: He listened to Erdoğan’s speech at the summit; he noticed that although Erdoğan touched upon a series of issues, he did not mention the “Cyprus problem.”

When he asks the EU to advance relations and says, “Pave the way for our participation in European defense projects,” why would he ruffle their feathers by calling for the recognition of the TRNC, right?

LENTIL NATIONALISTS

Let us briefly touch upon our relations with Greece.

While there was talk of “coming suddenly one night” until 2 years ago, the atmosphere is now covered in rhetoric of “dialogue and a positive climate.”

What Greece understands by a “positive climate” is something like this:

“Please do not fly planes in the Aegean, do not send ships to the Eastern Mediterranean. Let us talk, increase trade, and bring visa facilitation to the islands. While these are happening, let us continue to arm the islands. In fact, let us bring our boats up to Datça and Bodrum, and do not make a sound!..”

In the statement Mitsotakis made in Hungary, his saying, “Of course we are talking and we will talk. Even if we cannot find a framework to agree on our fundamental differences, we must maintain calm waters,” is this not exactly the expression of this picture in diplomatic terms?!

Look at the absurdity; while not a single objection has been raised by the opposition in our country to Greece making rapid progress under the slogan of this “positive climate,” the Greek opposition reacted to Mitsotakis by saying, “They are selling out the Aegean and Cyprus,” is that not something? In response to this, Mitsotakis described what they have done and boasted, “Today we are in a much stronger position than in 2019,” and labeled his opponents as “lentil nationalists.”

WHAT IS THE “OTHER WAY”?

Based on the Erdoğan-Christodoulides meeting, we had asked, “Where is Ankara heading on the Cyprus issue?” Let us explain through Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan’s visit to Athens on Thursday.

In an interview with the Greek newspaper Tanea before the visit, Fidan emphasized that it should be understood that the page of “reunification” of Cyprus has now closed, and then stated that “there could be different ways towards a solution,” adding the following:

“Ultimately, political issues are not like the laws of physics. If it is impossible to reach a result through one path, another path is taken. As the Turkish side, we are doing this. In this case, we need to base the solution on the realities on the Island. There are two separate peoples and two separate states on the Island. They can live side by side as neighbors, in cooperation. The two peoples will decide together how to achieve this. There is a need for a new spirit that will make the wealth, security, freedom, peace, and sovereignty of both the Greeks and the Turks possible on the Island.”

Fidan used the same expressions at the press conference he held with his counterpart George Gerapetritis in Athens, and while he said, “There is a need for a new spirit,” Gerapetritis stated that Greece’s views have not changed.

Even though not a millimeter of progress has been made so far, when Ankara has called on the world to “recognize the TRNC” through the mouth of Erdoğan himself, is talking about “another way and a new spirit” not opening the door to negotiations?

Let us see what this “other way, new spirit” could be.

It was two months ago; TRNC President Ersin Tatar announced that they had presented a 3-D formula to UN Secretary-General Guterres to start negotiations.

Tatar noted that 3-D meant “direct flights, direct contact, and direct trade to the TRNC,” in other words, “the lifting of unfair embargoes on Turkish Cypriots.”

Let us remember why the AKP, which pursued a “solution” in Cyprus by saying, “Non-solution is not a solution. We will not be the side running away from the table. We will get rid of the shackles on our feet,” as soon as it came to power, supported the Annan Plan in 2004.

The EU promised that if it said “yes” to the plan, the embargoes applied to the TRNC would be lifted; but despite the “yes,” it did not keep this promise!..

Let us continue.

6 months before that statement by Tatar, the Greek-Greek Cypriot media claimed that “Ersin Tatar requested that the TRNC be allowed to establish commercial relations with the EU and third countries, as in the Kosovo and Taiwan models, in order to sit at the negotiating table, and that the UN and Western mediators approached this positively with the thought that ‘it does not count as two separate states’,” and that “he asked Greek Cypriot leader Christodoulides to make ‘gestures of goodwill’,” but that Christodoulides “strongly opposed this.”

Whether it is a coincidence or part of a plan, it is unknown; two months after this claim, 54 members of parliament in the UK, one of the guarantor countries of Cyprus, signed a letter calling for the start of direct flights to the TRNC. The MPs pointed to the examples of Kosovo and Taiwan while noting that the UK grants flight permits to some countries it does not officially recognize.

IS THE SPIRIT OF 20 YEARS AGO RESURRECTING?

After all this, let us go back 20 years.

The Taiwan model was also on the agenda in 2003-2004 and the following years when the AKP was chasing a “solution.”

For example, in 2011, the then-EU Minister Egemen Bağış said the following:

“The moment a plane belonging to British Airways, Air France, KLM, or Lufthansa lands at Ercan Airport, Turkey is ready to open all its airports, ports, and airspace to South Cyprus planes and ships... A plane belonging to Alitalia or Air France landing at Ercan will not mean that they recognize North Cyprus. This will be a commercial relationship as in the Taiwan model.”

In short; I hope the “new spirit” that Foreign Minister Fidan mentions is not this old spirit... And furthermore, I hope it is not planned to accept the EU’s imposition to “recognize the Greek Cypriot administration” in exchange for the carrot of lifting the embargoes once again!..

Today is the 86th anniversary of our Ata’s physical departure from among us.

While Cyprus has been turned into a base for Israel and all kinds of powers have increased the pressure on us for the outlet of a “greater Kurdistan” to the Mediterranean, let us end with this warning that the Great Leader made just 1 year before his passing:

“Gentlemen, as long as Cyprus is in enemy hands, the supply routes of this region are blocked. Pay attention to Cyprus. This island is important for us.”

Müyesser YILDIZ

November 10, 2024