Cyprus: UN Security Council condemns Erdogan's positions
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan during the military parade marking the 47th anniversary of the Turkish invasion of southern Cyprus, including half of the capital Nicosia, on July 20, 2021. Birol BEBEK AFP
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The UN Security Council on Friday July 23 approved a unanimous declaration condemning Turkey's support for a partition of Cyprus.
A statement Ankara immediately rejected.
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The text was slow to see the light of day, and contrary to custom, it was hardened over the course of the negotiations.
Countries, in this case India and China, intervened to strengthen the initial project, according to diplomats quoted by AFP.
The UN declaration calls for a settlement of the Cypriot conflict based "
on a bicommunity and bizonal federation with political equality
".
It explicitly condemns the Turkish president and his "
unilateral actions which go
against his resolutions
".
On Tuesday, during a visit to the northern part of the divided island, Recep Tayyip Erdogan estimated that "
no progress in the negotiations
(could)
be made without accepting that there are two peoples and two states
" in Cyprus. Since its invasion by the Turkish army in 1974 in reaction to a coup d'état by Greek-Cypriot nationalists who wanted to reunite it with Greece, the island has been divided between the Republic of Cyprus - a member of the European Union - which exercises its authority in the south, and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) self-proclaimed in 1983, only recognized by Ankara.
The Turkish president had also announced the continuation of the reopening of Varosha,
a ghost town symbol of the division of this island
.
These positions sparked an outcry: the United States, Greece, the UN, Russia and the European Union had expressed their condemnation on Wednesday.
Visiting Nicosia, Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias considered that the Varosha project confirmed Ankara's intention "
to extend its occupation of Cyprus and establish neo-Ottoman power in the eastern Mediterranean region
" .
United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres called on "
all parties to refrain from any unilateral act
".
In its statement, the Security Council in turn condemns the announcement on Varosha.
He calls for the “
immediate withdrawal
” of this measure and that of “
all changes made in Varosha since October 2020, and stresses the importance of full respect and implementation of its resolutions, including the transfer of Varosha under a UN administration
”.
🆕 # Breaking #Cyprus
🇺🇳 # UNSC calls for immediate reversal of all steps taken on #Varosha since Oct 2020
➡️underscores the need to avoid any further unilateral action that runs contrary to UNSC resolutions & that could raise tensions on the island
📄: https : //t.co/Bu0qxAkSBT pic.twitter.com/4Mudxq1Itd
- UK at the UN 🇬🇧 (@UKUN_NewYork) July 23, 2021
But Turkish diplomacy remains intransigent.
"
We reject the UN Security Council declaration
" concerning the planned reopening under Turkish Cypriot control of the resort town of Varosha "as
well as the declarations of various countries which are based on unjustified demands and incompatible with the realities on the island,
”said a statement from the Turkish Foreign Ministry.
Stigmatizing "
the intransigent attitude of the Cypriot-Greek administration
", the ministry underlines that all the efforts never made it possible to reach a federal statute.
► To read also: Visiting the northern part of the island, Erdogan still pleads for the definitive partition of Cyprus
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Turkey
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Antonio Guterres
Recep Tayyip Erdogan
On the same subject
Turkish President Erdogan in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, a visit closely followed by the EU