The government must clarify what its goal and priorities are with regards EU-Turkey relations
AKEL C.C. Press Office, 16th July 2020, Nicosia
In view of the European Council, the government is called upon to clarify what is its goal and priorities are on developments with regards EU-Turkey relations. Above all, however, it is called upon to reflect on why the Cyprus problem has been left out of discussions, while at the same time the reports submitted by the UN Secretary General contain negative and worrying elements.
The government is called upon to make an objective assessment of the situation at an EU level and evaluate whether it is satisfied with the results so far in its efforts for European solidarity to take on a practical meaning and not be limited to verbal declarations. The results as far as the imposition of EU sanctions on Turkey are – as it is generally recognised – almost negligible and certainly much lower than the targets set by the government itself. In addition, the government must specify what the position of the tool of sanctions is in the overall set of government targets.
As for the possibility of the opening of an EU-Turkey dialogue is concerned, the EU itself must clarify the content and purpose of this dialogue.
AKEL believes that the government must clarify that the first priority in these processes is the Cyprus problem, the effort to end the ongoing occupation and division of our country by Turkey. Our goal must be the resumption of negotiations from the point where they had remained at Crans Montana in order to find a comprehensive solution to the Cyprus problem based on the agreed framework, which will permit other issues in relation to the delimitation of maritime zones in the Eastern Mediterranean to be resolved.
