Brussels, 22/01/2014 (Agence Europe) - On 21 January, European Council President Herman Van Rompuy said that he had agreed with Turkey's Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on “the urgent need to find a comprehensive settlement to the Cyprus issue” - an opinion shared by European Commission President José Manuel Barroso. “It is in all our interests, and we encourage the parties to resume settlement talks as soon as possible”, added Van Rompuy. “A decisive move in this field would no doubt also be conducive to progress in Turkey's wider relations with the European Union”, said Barroso.
Erdogan said he was “determined to move in the right direction” on this issue, adding that “we are doing everything in our power to make progress on the situation and we will continue”. He hoped for a positive approach from the Republic of Cyprus. “If the approach could be positive, it'll be a win-win for everyone - for the Cypriots but also for Turkey as an EU accession candidate”, he added. Later, during a press conference with European Parliament President Martin Schulz, Erdogan said that “the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus [recognised only by Turkey] has always had a positive attitude”. “Our basic principle is a federal structure with two founding states. We can't accept anything outside this”, Erdogan stated.
Returning to the calls for the Turkish troops to leave the north of the island, Erdogan said that his country would have been ready to do this if the Annan plan had been accepted in 2004. Recalling that the Turkish Cypriot community accepted it while the Greek Cypriot community rejected it, he added “now, they [the Greek Cypriots] are telling us to withdraw our troops”.
Questioned on the fact that the six MEPs are from the Republic of Cyprus, Erdogan stated that “the southern part can't represent the whole of Cyprus”, adding that “the existence of the northern part can't be totally denied”.
The previous day, Greece's Minister for Foreign Affairs Evangelos Venizelos told the European Parliament's foreign affairs committee that “the role of Turkey is essential in the Cyprus issue”. “It's Turkey which has a predominant role”, he stated. (CG/transl.fl)