Lots of News from Cyprus

CYPRUS MAIL
Tassos maintains slender poll lead
Papadopoulos has slight lead over his main rivals in the presidential race, according to a poll released last night. Papadopoulos is ahead with 31 percent while Christofias is a close second with 30.5 percent. Kasoulides is third with 27.5 percent. According to the poll prepared for state television CyBC, Papadopoulos is expected to win comfortably – 47.5 percent – should there be a runoff vote with Kasoulides. Christofias would be the winner in a runoff against Papadopoulos with 41 percent compared to 40 percent.
CYPRUS MAIL
Lillikas accuses DISY of ‘bringing foreigners to tell us what to do’
Spokesman for Papadopoulos, Lillikas, yesterday threw broad-sides at DISY for “bringing foreigners to tell Cypriots what to do” referring to the two-day conference of the European People’s Party on EU Mediterranean Policy. In response, DISY officials accused Lillikas of “xenophobia.”
TODAY’S ZAMAN
Sejdiu: Kosovo can’t be Cyprus precedent
Kosovar President Fatmir Sejdiu has countered suggestions that Kosovo’s impending declaration of independence will constitute a precedent in international relations, including for the situation of the divided island of Cyprus. Sejdiu, speaking in an interview with Today’s Zaman following his talks in Ankara with Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoðan on Wednesday, first of all noted that whether Kosovo’s declaration of independence could set a precedent as suggested by many didn’t come up during the meeting with Erdoðan. “Kosovo is a unique issue. It cannot set a precedent for another region or country,” Sejdiu said... Earlier this week, Slovenian Foreign Minister Dimitrij Rupel, whose country holds the EU’s rotating six-month presidency, told his hosts in Tbilisi that Kosovo is a “unique case” which must not be viewed as a precedent in solving other similar crises around the world. “The European Union has many times pointed to Kosovo as a unique case, and it should not be viewed as precedent,” Rupel said then. The province has been run by the UN and NATO since the 1999 war in Kosovo, when NATO bombed Serbia for 78 days to stop its crackdown against the province’s Albanian separatists.
Thursday, February 7
REUTERS
Turk Cypriots warily eye Greek poll
Turkish Cypriots are anxiously awaiting the outcome of an election this month in the Greek Cypriot south that could cement partition of the Mediterranean island they share and wreck Turkey's ties with Europe. Papadopoulos, who led Greek Cypriots into rejection of a U.N.-backed Cyprus reunification plan in 2004, is seeking re-election in the February 17 poll but a strong challenge from two rivals is likely to force a second round on February 24. Victory for the hawkish Papadopoulos, who enjoys a small lead in opinion polls, would dash Turkish Cypriot hopes of a swift end to their international isolation and hobble Turkey's efforts to revive its stalled European Union entry bid. "The Greek Cypriot elections are very important for us... We don't have much time, our peoples are becoming more estranged by the day," Turkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat told Reuters at his residence in Nicosia, Europe's last divided capital. Talat, whose community supported the 2004 U.N. peace plan, declined to comment on the candidates contesting the Greek Cypriot presidency, but said a fresh peace drive was essential. "The status quo is not sustainable or fair because ... we are isolated. This election is really the last chance (for change)."... A Western diplomat based in Greek Nicosia said it was vital that all parties committed after the elections to a new U.N.-led peace process or face "a drift towards permanent partition". "We cannot allow this problem to fester ... Cypriot voters perhaps don't realize how stark the options are," he said... The Cyprus dispute is already hampering closer cooperation between the EU and NATO in conflict zones from Kosovo to Afghanistan. Turkey is a NATO member but Cyprus is not. This week, in a blow to EU unity, the Greek Cypriot government prevented the 27-nation bloc from forging a common position on Kosovo's independence. Cyprus fears Kosovo -- whose independence is strongly opposed by Serbia of which the mainly ethnic Albanian province is still a part -- would create a precedent for recognition of the TRNC, despite EU assurances that Kosovo is a unique case. Brushing aside suggestions Kosovo might be a model for the TRNC, Talat said Turkish Cypriots still favor reunification along the lines of past U.N. peace plans, involving a loose federal government and wide autonomy for the two communities. "Realistically, we can solve this problem in less than one year. There is already a huge body of work on what needs to be done ... It is possible with good will and good faith," he said.... But seasoned Cyprus observers are not optimistic. They say inter-communal contacts have fallen since the Greek Cypriots rejected the 2004 peace plan. Trade is static. Cooperation on issues ranging from crime-fighting to conservation founders on the Greek refusal to accept the legitimacy of the Turkish side. "The two sides have become more entrenched. There are big psychological barriers," said Hasan Kutlu Ince, head of the Turkish Cypriot Chamber of Commerce. The Greek Cypriots' blocking of EU efforts to end a trade embargo against the TRNC has eroded Turkish Cypriot support for the EU. Greek Cypriots fear allowing the TRNC to trade freely with the EU could lead to de facto recognition of the enclave. Some say the TRNC's isolation is already starting to crack. Last week, to Greek Cypriot fury, former German chancellor Gerhard Schroeder led a delegation of German businessmen to northern Cyprus. Talat has held talks -- unthinkable a few years ago -- with EU foreign ministers and U.S. secretaries of state. Several foreign companies including Australian franchise Gloria Jean's Coffees now operate in northern Cyprus. Syria has opened a regular ferry link to the TRNC. "I do not see how the two communities, with all the hang-ups they have about their relationship, can ever agree to come back together in one state to run their affairs," said Ayla Gurel, an analyst at the International Peace Research Institute Oslo. "(Another Papadopoulos win) might lead the international community to think the previously unthinkable -- partition."
UN NEWS CENTER
Top UN envoy reiterates support for Cyprus settlement
The top United Nations official in Cyprus today voiced the world body’s support for a settlement on the Mediterranean island. Speaking at a medal parade for the UN Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP), the Secretary-General’s Special Envoy Michael Møller said that “rather than launching a new initiative on its own, the UN will support good faith efforts on the part of both sides to restart talks and work for a solution.” t has been 44 years since the mission was established, and he said that it is often legitimately asked what more UNFICYP can do after operating for decades in Cyprus and whether the leaders of the Greek and Turkish Cypriot communities have the political will necessary to reach a solution. Ultimately, the “key to a settlement” lies not with the UN, but with the Cypriots themselves, stressed Mr. Møller, who also serves as head of UNFICYP. “This year may indeed prove crucial for a solution, but we have seen expectations raised many times before,” he noted. “The time has come for serious negotiations. The window of opportunity we have this year will not remain open forever.” Last December, the Security Council voted unanimously to extend UNFICYP’s mandate for six months, emphasizing that “time is not on the side of a settlement, and that negotiations to reunify the island have been at an impasse for too long.” Expressing its full support for the July 2006 agreement – which set out the necessary framework for a political process designed to lead to the resumption of full-fledged negotiations – the Council voiced deep concern over the “lack of any progress.”
CYPRUS NEWS AGENCY
Christofias: I will take initiatives to solve the Cyprus problem
Christofias will, if elected, undertake initiatives to press with the need for a political settlement. The leader of the leftwing AKEL party said he will take his international campaign to the UN Secretary-General, the Security Council's five permanent members and the European Commission to whom he will declare his readiness to work for a solution on the basis of UN resolutions, the High Level Agreements between the Greek Cypriot and the Turkish Cypriot communities and the international and European law. ''Either personally or through my envoys, I will call on them and I will be very persistent. My credentials will be those of a man who wants a solution. Our credibility in Europe, with regard to a political settlement, is at its lowest and we have to rectify that,'' Christofias has told CNA in an interview. On his links with the Turkish Cypriots, he said he will work very hard to convince them that it is in their interests as well to settle all aspects of the political problem in a way that will serve the country’s interests and not those of Turkey or others. The AKEL General Secretary said his government, if elected, will comprise “progressive personalities” from a wide spectrum and he appeared ready to talk to the rightwing Democratic Rally party, without however preempting the outcome of such a discussion. Responding to questions, Christofias said while sharing power with the government of Papadooulos he addressed himself to Russia, China and the Arab world to help Cyprus’ cause for justice and appeared disappointed that now his former coalition partner is very critical of him on various counts. The main focus of Christofias’ campaign is the Cyprus problem and in response to questions, he expressed the view that “things are going from bad to worse” and believes that division is at our doorstep. “Now I am risking everything because I believe that we can make a last-ditch effort, having regained our credibility at home and at abroad, to avert permanent partition,” he pointed out. Asked where he would address himself seeking support for a solution, he referred to the Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC), which he describes as ''a time-delay bomb for Cyprus,'' especially after an OIC resolution which talks about a ''Turkish Cypriot state.” ''If Turkey is seeking diplomatic recognition of the illegal regime, it will start from the OIC. So I will address our friends at the OIC and ask them to support the principles of international law, UN resolutions'' he explained. Replying to questions, he said he would undertake an initiative to break the current deadlock and push for the implementation of a UN-brokered agreement in July 2006. In Christofias' view, Turkey is unwilling to implement the agreement since it does not want to engage in in-depth discussions ''because some countries, including EU member states, have promised to upgrade the occupation regime through an end of the so-called isolation of the Turkish Cypriots.''“The July agreement, which provides for the establishment of technical groups and working committees to deal with all aspects of the problem is a tool which we can apply during our initiatives,” he added. He believes that Turkey before 2009, when the EU Commission will issue a new assessment on Ankara’s European bid, will instruct Talat to proceed with the implementation of the agreement. Christofias said that the current stalemate is due to the stance of the Turkish side and believes that “this situation serves only Turkey’s interests.” The House President told CNA that no one can set a timeframe for the solution of the problem because the solution is not solely up to the Greek Cypriot side. Regarding his relations with the Turkish Cypriots, Christofias said that his candidacy on this point ''clearly supersedes'' that of his rivals. ''I come from a political party which has never promoted nationalism or chauvinism. My party has been a common springboard with the Turkish Cypriots to gain human, social and economic rights.” AKEL, he noted, has also been a “messenger of peaceful coexistence between the two communities and a forum which teaches the spirit of cooperation with the Turkish Cypriots.” He believes that the worst mistake made by the Greek Cypriots since independence in 1960 was that they never tried to win the trust of the Turkish Cypriots. ''If we could do that, I think that the hands of Turkish imperialism would be tied,'' he observed. Referring to AKEL's contacts with the Republican Turkish Party (CTP), Christofias said that after the 2004 referendum, despite the fact that the Turkish Cypriot party did not respond to AKEL's calls for a dialogue, AKEL continued its efforts with a view to explain the Greek Cypriot concerns. ''It is impossible to accept a solution granting the right of intervention to the guarantor powers or a solution not uniting the state and its people under a federal bi-communal umbrella, nor can we accept military presence on the island. The solution cannot be viable unless the refugees are given the right to choose whether they want to return or not to their homes under Turkish Cypriot administration. Turkish settlers cannot be turned into citizens of the Republic,'' Christofias said. On the prospects of discussions with the right-wing DISY party, should he go through to the second round of elections, Christofias said he would talk to DISY and the parties backing the President, if their candidates fail to pass to the run-off election. ''If DISY President says 'let's talk', I wouldn't say no, just as I wouldn't say no to DIKO or EDEK. But of course I cannot predict the outcome of these talks,'' he concluded.