Who is engaging with whom!..

Erdoğan was at the European Political Community Summit in Hungary the other day. He posed for photos with the leaders there, especially Macron, looking happier and more cheerful than we ever see him in our own country.

In his speech at the summit, he stated that “there is no reasonable explanation for the years-long obstruction of the accession process of a candidate country that makes significant contributions to Europe’s prosperity and security,” and specifically said that “we want to see concrete cooperation in the fight against the PKK and FETÖ.”

Even children understand that they will not make Turkey a member even if we fulfill every one of their demands; yet the government has not given up on its EU passion.

The EU also keeps our country under control quite well with the carrot of “dialogue/cooperation.” There are reasons for them smiling at us again recently. Their biggest priorities are for us to ensure Europe’s “security” by keeping Syrians here and for us to resolve the “Cyprus issue” in line with Greek Cypriot-Greek theses—in other words, for us to surrender on this front as well.

Who stopped the negotiations with the EU, with whom Erdoğan is posing happily and making calls? The Greek Cypriot administration and France!..

Who, after the US, arms the Greek Cypriot side the most? France and Germany!..

How did Josep Borrell, the High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, whom we chase after, react just a few days ago to TRNC President Ersin Tatar’s participation in the Organization of Turkic States (OTS) meeting in Kyrgyzstan? He emphasized that the EU only recognizes the Greek Cypriot side and stated that they reject efforts to “legitimize” the TRNC.

With the situation as it is, what did Erdoğan do at that summit? He drank coffee and ate a croissant with Nikos Christodoulides, the leader of the so-called “Republic of Cyprus,” which we do not recognize.

As if the meeting wasn’t planned... As if it wasn’t an official diplomatic dialogue...

What matters is the intention of the other side and how it is perceived. Christodoulides said, “This meeting was an opportunity to convey that I am ready to restart negotiations for the resolution of the Cyprus issue.”

While Ankara and the TRNC are in the mood of “we do not accept negotiations without the recognition of the TRNC,” we saw UN Secretary-General Guterres bring Ersin Tatar and Nikos Christodoulides together for an informal dinner last month. Let us also note how this was perceived.

Five days ago, Greek Prime Minister Mitsotakis, who discussed “efforts to restart negotiations regarding the Cyprus issue” with Stefanos, the General Secretary of the Greek Cypriot AKEL party—which was founded to oppose the unification of Cyprus and Greece, i.e., Enosis—reiterated his unchanging theses on the solution and expressed that the meeting held with Guterres’s initiative was a “positive first step.”

Now, won’t they see the coffee-croissant chat as a “positive second step”?

ERDOĞAN’S RESPONSE TO THE 2006 COFFEE OFFER

Let us recall an incident that took place in 2006 right here. Erdoğan is at an EU summit again. He encounters the Greek Cypriot leader of the time, Papadopoulos. He explains what Papadopoulos said to him and his response as follows:

“He said, ‘Let the two of us drink coffee and talk.’ I said to him, ‘Mr. Papadopoulos, your interlocutor is Mehmet Ali Talat. You will drink coffee with him. If you want us to be there too, let us invite the Greek Prime Minister, Mr. Karamanlis. Let us sit as a quartet, drink, and talk... I said to the Austrian Prime Minister, ‘I cannot come together with Papadopoulos in this way. Talat and Papadopoulos need to come together. But if you wish, there could be a Turkey-Greece-TRNC and South Cyprus summit that you also attend. If you wish, let us do this in Vienna, let us have a meal.’ The Austrian Prime Minister replied, ‘This is a good offer, let me try it.’ I suppose he could not succeed, and then there was no sound. But Annan succeeded in this. He brought Papadopoulos and Talat together.”

Of course, now they don’t say to the Greek Cypriot leader, “Your interlocutor is Ersin Tatar,” and they drink coffee. Because a lot of water has flowed under the bridge.

Like what, you ask?

For example, after the negotiations between the TRNC and the Greek Cypriot side were ended in 2018; it emerged that the then-Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu and Greek Cypriot leader Nicos Anastasiades had a secret meeting. So much so that even the then-TRNC President Mustafa Akıncı had to issue a warning: “If such meetings become a continuous situation, it could lead to the perception that the Turkish Cypriot side is being sidelined. The image that the Greek Cypriot side has achieved its goal, which it has desired for years, of excluding Turkish Cypriots and holding direct talks with Turkey, would cause great harm.”

When it was heard in June 2022 that Greek Cypriot leader Anastasiades would also attend the informal dinner in Madrid that would bring together NATO members and EU countries, upon Spain’s request and Turkey’s approval, CHP’s Utku Çakırözer said, “What kind of imposition are you doing this under?... This is a huge concession; they will want more. Someone who sits at an informal meeting today will want an official seat tomorrow,” but no one paid any attention.

Not only did they not pay attention, but Anastasiades announced at the dinner that he had “exchanged views with his Turkish counterpart Erdoğan on the Cyprus issue,” that he was “ready to restart negotiations,” and that he had “said this would be beneficial for Cyprus and all Cypriots, as well as for stability and security in the Eastern Mediterranean, and for Greece-Turkey and EU-Turkey relations.”

THE STANCE OF THE SO-CALLED STATE

This is the stance of the great Republic of Turkey against the Greek Cypriot side.

Let us also look at the stance of this so-called state, which we do not recognize, with two examples.

In 2016, the then-Greek Cypriot leader Nicos Anastasiades came to Istanbul to attend the United Nations World Humanitarian Summit. This was the first visit made with the title of “Head of State” after 54 years. The meeting was hosted by Turkey, but because it was the UN that issued the invitation, no objection could be raised to Anastasiades using this title.

It was on the occasion of this meeting that Erdoğan gave an official dinner. What did Anastasiades do when he learned that TRNC President Mustafa Akıncı was also invited to the dinner?

He cut his program short, saying, “Enjoy your meal, I am not coming,” and left Istanbul.

And at the Antalya Diplomacy Forum held in 2022, where Greece was also invited, the following happened:

The then-Foreign Minister of the Greek Cypriot side—the one Erdoğan drank coffee with, the current President Nicos Christodoulides—learned that TRNC President Ersin Tatar would attend this meeting and called his counterparts, asking them not to attend the forum. Upon this, the Greek representatives decided not to come. EU High Representative Josep Borrell also did not attend the reception given by Erdoğan for the same reason.

Where is Ankara’s path on the Cyprus issue heading? We will explain that tomorrow.

Müyesser YILDIZ

November 9, 2024