AKEL on N. Christodoulides’ proposal regarding Famagusta

 

27 October 2026, AKEL C.C. Press Office, Nicosia

The issue of Famagusta, and in particular the return of the enclosed city to its lawful inhabitants, has long been at the heart of the Greek Cypriot side’s demands and is inextricably linked to the effort to end the illegal Turkish occupation. This approach is also adopted by the relevant Resolutions of the United Nations Security Council, which set out actions for the non-implementation of which the occupying power bears the sole responsibility.

It is also a fact that proposals similar to that of the President of the Republic, which linked the issue of Famagusta to broader Confidence-Building Measures (CBM’s), have been put forward repeatedly in the past, without leading to the desired result – even during periods of intense negotiation activity. Especially, if is reasonable to ask whether the tabling of such an ambitious proposal at this juncture can make a substantial contribution to the effort to resume negotiations, or whether there is a danger that the discussion will be diverted from the real issue at hand. In particular, if we consider that, after many months of discussions, difficulties remain even in reaching an agreement on the opening of new checkpoints.

We all agree that the CBM’s can play a supporting role, but not as a substitute for efforts to find a comprehensive solution to the Cyprus problem. And the crucial issue right now, as the UN Secretary-General himself has pointedly noted, is to make the necessary preparations for the resumption of substantive negotiations from the point at which they were suspended at Crans-Montana, on the basis of the agreed framework and the relevant UN resolutions.

We recall in this regard that the United Nations has already recorded the convergences up to the conclusion of the Crans-Montana Conference, including the Maps which, amongst other things, return Famagusta under Greek Cypriot administration. The United Nations must immediately hand over the document setting out the convergence to both sides, and the President must insist on this.

AKEL has for some time now submitted a specific proposal both to the National Council and to the UN Secretary-General on how the two sides can engage in the discussion without the convergences being nullified.