The President of the Republic, Mr Nicos
Anastasiades, made today the following statement to reporters at the
Presidential Palace, after the meeting he had earlier with the leader of the
Turkish Cypriot community, Mr Dervish Eroglu, in the UN Protected Area, in the
now defunct Nicosia international airport, in the presence of the Special
Representative of the UN Secretary General in Cyprus, Mrs Lisa Buttenheim, with
regard to the resumption of the negotiations on the Cyprus
problem.
In his statement, the President of the
Republic said:
“I want to believe that this day will be
the beginning in order to put an end to the undesirable and unacceptable
situation that keeps our island and our people divided for about forty
years.
It is the wish of the leaders of both
communities, within an atmosphere of mutual respect and mutual understanding, to
reach a solution that will terminate for good the current unacceptable state of
affairs, and that will create the conditions for us to live in a modern European
state, which through respect for the human rights of all the citizens, will
create the conditions for coexistence, joint achievements and
progress.
It is well known that the solution will
be based on the High Level Agreements and the numerous decisions and resolutions
of the United Nations, in order for the Republic of Cyprus to evolve into a
federal, bicommunal, bizonal state with political
equality.
Today’s joint statement sets the
framework for the basic principles of a solution. What is required is the vision
and the determination of the leaders, but also of the people of Cyprus, to work
in order, on the one hand, to reestablish the trust among them, but also, at the
same time, to achieve a solution that will not yield winners and
losers.
Addressing the country’s political
leadership and fully respecting the various views, I call on them, in response
to the common wish of all the Greek Cypriots, to join forces with us for what is
to follow, because it is well known that the joint communique is not the final
solution but the beginning of an arduous effort in order to reach the desirable
goals.
I am certain that the love for our
homeland, but also the patriotism, which is a given, of all of the political
forces and the people, will let us fight united for the final vindication of the
expectations of our people.”
