Simitis: We Achieved ENOSIS!
Güncelleme Tarihi:
Launching an isolation action on Rauf Denktas in his power as EU Term Chairman, Greek PM Kostas Simitis said that “We achieved ENOSIS!” (Annexation of Cyprus to Greece). Slipping this sentence in his euphoria, Simitis instantly corrected his words.
The Greek Government pushed the button to isolate TRNC President Rauf Denktas. Meeting the leaders of the Turkish Cypriots opposition leaders, Simitis, turned down two of the three requests of Turkish Cypriot politicians, saying that; We can not keep two chairs of six at the European Parliament vacant; We can not include Turkish into the official languages of EU, unless there is a settlement.
However he called on the Annan Plan to remain as a framework for negotiations and a settlement.
The meeting held at the residence of the Greek Cypriot ambassador just a few meters away from the Green Line dividing the two communities, has been first in the history of Cyprus; for the first time a Greek Prime Minister met Turkish Cypriot opposition leaders. Ruling National Unity Party and Democrat Party turned down the invitation while all representatives of the opposition accepted it. The National Justice Party and the Right-wing Reformist Initiative Party YAP were not invited. All Greek Cypriot parties were present in the meeting, with Social Salvation Party TKP’s Huseyin Angolemli, Alpay Durukan from the Patriotic Union Movement YBH, Izzet Izcan from the United Cyprus Party BKP and Mehmet Suleymanoglu from the Cyprus socialist Party KSP. Greek Cypriot parties talked very little at the meeting, while Turkish Cypriot parties demanded the two seats kept vacant for Turkish Cypriots at EP, Turkish language to be included into the EU languages, and using the Annan Plan as the framework for a solution.
At their presentation, Turkish Cypriot politicians recalled that the 1960 Constitution of Cyprus described Turkish as the official language of the Cyprus Republic.
Simitis turned down the requests for Turkish language and two seats at EP, before a settlement.
At the meeting the opposition representatives of the Turkish Cypriot side said that the Social and Economic Initiatives soon to be disclosed by Greek Cypriots were in fact, “Minority Rights” and they were not consulted during their preparation. Simitis said that they did not regard Turks as a minority.
TRNC President Denktas had reacted at the meeting saying that “Simitis invited party leaders as the opposition parties of Cyprus under occupation, rather than the opposition of TRNC. It needs digestion to attend it.”
After the meeting, CTP leader Mehmet Ali Talat said that he was optimistic for the settlement of the Cyprus issue.
Asked by a reporter, who was in power in TRNC, Talat said “The people!”