The question remains as to how our side makes use of Britain’s position that it isn’t interested in being a guarantor power

Statement by the AKEL C.C. Spokesperson Stefanos Stefanou on the British guarantees

AKEL C.C Press Office, 6 March 2019, Nicosia

Britain’s positive position that it isn’t interested in being a guarantor power is not a position has been taken today, but dates back. During the period of the Christofias governance, the British government was already expressing the same position.

This position took on a practical shape at Mont Peleran 3, where the position adopted by Britain was in favour of the termination of the Treaty of Guarantee and of whatever intervention rights from the day one of the solution of the Cyprus problem.

This same position was repeated at Crans Montana.

The question was and remains, how our side makes use of this position of Britain, but also of the UN Secretary-General and the EU.

Unfortunately, Nikos Anastasiades failed to make use of that opportunity, which, according to the UN Secretary General himself, was historic. That’s also precisely the reason why Mr. Guterres noted in his Report that all the guarantor powers cooperated and that the responsibility for the deadlock lies with the two leaders.

Even at this stage, the President must seek to make use of the Guterres framework in the direction of resuming the negotiation procedure. That’s the only way Turkey will be forced to take on its responsibility, namely either to accept the abolition of the guarantees and intervention rights, or that Turkey itself will remain the one exposed instead of the Greek Cypriot side as is the case today.