By adopting slogans he criticized in the past, nobody knows for sure what the President’s real intentions are

Statement by the General Secretary of AKEL on the President’s reference that the name of the solution does not matter

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

The President of the Republic in an interview used the argument that the content of the solution and not what its name is matters. This is an argument that dates backs. It has been put forth extensively in the past by various forces and circles with the objective goal of rejecting federation and raising the issue of a unitary state for discussion indirectly.

The President in this specific interview was asked if he favours the solution of federation or confederation and he replied that the name is of no importance. One could easily draw the conclusion that Nikos Anastasiades is now adopting what he up until yesterday was denouncing.

I must say that our view, which is the same today as it was in the past, there is a substance in what you name the solution, and it isn’t just the name. Federation is one thing and confederation something completely different. Federation concerns one state and confederation two states.

If we also recall the recent statements made by Mr. Anastasiades, namely that he did not take over a state to deliver a community, statements that he had criticized vehemently in the past, when they were made by others and by the late Tassos Papadopoulos, then we can say that the transformation of Mr. Anastasiades is impressive. He is continuing on the path of adopting slogans he himself severely criticized in the past, resulting in both on the domestic front, but primarily internationally, nobody knows for sure what his real intentions are.