The President of the Republic, Mr Nicos Anastasiades
received today, at the Presidential Palace, children from the Cypriot community
in the Unites States of America who are members of the children’s team of
Eleftheria-Pancyprian Association.
The President welcomed the children and said that “we
strive to see our country free from occupation troops, to reunify our homeland
and it is our duty to create conditions, in a state that is a member of the
European Union, so that the inhabitants of this country, Greek Cypriots and
Turkish Cypriots, can live together once again.”
He added that for this to happen there must be
implementation of the basic principles of the EU and the UN Charter, as well as
the safeguarding of human rights and basic freedoms, so that we can all live
together again in peace while avoiding mistakes of the past.
“We cannot afford to remain divided, we cannot afford
to risk the existence of Hellenism in this country and we don't have the luxury
to continue thinking that either we or the Turkish Cypriots can survive while
divided.
Our effort is – with the help of important friends of ours,
including the United States, I am happy to say – to succeed so that the new
round of negotiations can lead us prospectively to a solution that addresses
the concerns of the Greek Cypriots without ignoring the sensitivities and the
concerns of the Turkish Cypriots.”
He added that “we respect the identity of our Turkish
Cypriot compatriots, and at the same time we want them to also respect our
ethnic origin. And the state we are trying to build calls for peaceful
coexistence, irrespective of the ethnic origin of each citizen."
The President also thanked the Pancyprian Association
for their efforts for the liberation and vindication of Cyprus, and expressed
the hope for Cyprus to succeed in its just cause with the assistance of the
Cypriots abroad.
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