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Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) President Tufan Erhurman said the Greek Cypriot side's rapprochement with Israel is undermining trust in ongoing settlement talks. He was speaking at a press conference following his meeting with Greek Cypriot leader Nikos Christodoulides.
Erhurman said the two sides had also raised recent engagements and agreements involving Greek Cyprus and parties that disregard the Turkish Cypriot people since their previous meeting.
"The rapprochement and agreements between Greek Cyprus and Israel have not contributed to the process either. On the contrary, we clearly conveyed to our counterpart that these are developments that erode trust," Erhurman stated.
Erhurman said no issue has yet been resolved on Confidence Building Measures, and that no agreement has been reached even on the four-point methodology referenced by U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.
"On the remaining substantive issues, the two sides are only at the stage of listening to each other's thoughts and views. The picture is clearly this," he said.
Erhurman said that while he wants a new "5+1" meeting, the format involving Türkiye, Greece, the United Kingdom and the two Cypriot sides alongside the U.N., to take place, the necessary conditions have not yet been met.
"As of now, the conditions for convening a new 5+1 have not been established. We of course want a 5+1 to be convened. But we believe the necessary groundwork must be laid in Nicosia for this 5+1 to produce a meaningful, results-oriented outcome," he said, adding: "This has been our position from the start, and it hasn't changed in the slightest. We don't want a 5+1 just for the sake of having a 5+1."
The Turkish Cypriot president noted that Guterres had said in his own remarks that no trilateral or 5+1 meeting would take place in New York this week, calling this consistent with what the Turkish Cypriot side had said all along.
He said he would hold a separate meeting with Guterres, as would Christodoulides.
Referencing Guterres's remark about not repeating "past mistakes," Erhurman pointed to the failed 2004 Annan Plan referendums, the 2017 Crans-Montana process, and the earlier Talat-Christofias and Eroglu-Anastasiades talks, saying: "If these processes produced no result, then this time something different needs to be done."
He said the full context of Guterres's remarks suggested the secretary-general meant there should be no negotiations or 5+1 meeting merely "for the sake of it."
Erhurman described Thursday's meeting with Christodoulides as "relatively better" than their previous encounter, noting that the earlier meeting had not even been followed by a UN statement.
He said the talks covered Confidence Building Measures, methodology, and substantive issues, with Christodoulides conveying some new ideas and Erhurman sharing the Turkish Cypriot side's own views in turn.
Erhurman said the Greek Cypriot side's characterization of the EU citizenship issue for children of mixed marriages as a "humanitarian matter" represented a modest step forward, if the wording was deliberately chosen, but stressed the issue goes further.
"Yes, it is humanitarian, but beyond being humanitarian, it also constitutes a human rights violation," he said.
Erhurman said that while efforts continue toward implementing Confidence Building Measures, steps have simultaneously been taken that undermine existing trust.
He cited attempts to cancel two festivals planned in the TRNC, an effort to cancel a Barcelona Football Academy activity in Nicosia, negative moves related to a meeting TRNC Presidential Undersecretary Mehmet Dana held with ambassadors in the buffer zone, and unilateral, one-sided decisions produced in the European Parliament.
"We viewed these, setting aside whether they increase trust, as actions that erode whatever trust currently exists. We shared this with them directly, and not only with them, we also shared it with the European Union and the United Nations, and we continue to await a response on these matters," Erhurman said.
The Turkish Cypriot president said the Confidence Building Measures framework covers seven topics: new crossing points, mine clearance, a joint mechanism on disasters, a joint mechanism on irregular migration, sports matters, EU citizenship for children of mixed marriages, and a structure related to civil society.
"We had already accepted six of these in the Secretary-General's meeting with us. On one, new crossing points, there is not yet agreement. So we are prepared to take all seven topics to a more advanced stage of consideration. We've already accepted six," he said.
Erhurman said statements by Greek Cypriot authorities had claimed all seven items had been accepted by both sides, "whereas we are aware that their problems persist regarding six of those seven items."
Erhurman said he continues to represent the Turkish Cypriot people's will for a solution, including those who did not vote for him, and rejected the idea of pursuing "a solution at any cost."
He said: "For me, non-solution is not a solution. Therefore, as I have always said, I represent the solution-oriented will of the Turkish Cypriot people... But this does not mean we accept any approach along the lines of 'let there be a solution, whatever it takes.' We will continue to seek a solution to this problem. Because our approach is not the approach that 'non-solution is a solution.'"
He said he would depart the island for New York on Sept. 23 for planned meetings with Guterres and the U.N. secretary-general's personal envoy on Cyprus, Maria Angela Holguin Cuellar, adding that Holguin has described Confidence Building Measures as a "sine qua non," an essential precondition, for any 5+1 meeting to take place.
Summarizing the state of play, Erhurman said: "First, there is no issue that has been resolved in terms of Confidence Building Measures. Second, we continue our efforts before the entire international community regarding actions that I would call trust-diminishing or trust-eroding. Because we never accept these. And if they continue, it is not possible for this process to move forward in any way."
He said no agreement has been reached even on the first of the four sequential methodology items laid out by the U.N..
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