Cyprus reunification talks end without solution

Swiss talks fail to outline concrete steps to resolve territorial dispute

 News Briefs

UN-mediated peace talks on the Cyprus issue ended here without a solution Monday after negotiations failed to outline concrete steps to resolve the dispute, a diplomatic source told Anadolu Agency.

"The uncompromising attitude" of the Greek Cypriot and the Greek side resulted in the failure of the reunification talks, the source said.

The Turkish Cypriot side did not see "good intention" from the Greek side, the source added.

The two-day process was overseen by UN Special Envoy on Cyprus Espen Barth Eide in an effort to resolve one of the world’s longest-running political dilemmas.

Turkish and Greek Cypriot leaders were trying to reach a final agreement that could see the island reunified after four decades.

During the current round of Swiss talks, territorial changes were not discussed since no common ground could be found to continue discussions on the issue, the source added.

Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus President Mustafa Akinci and Greek Cypriot leader Nicos Anastasiades met in Mont Pelerin for the first round earlier this month. They returned Sunday to tackle territorial adjustments needed for an anticipated two-state federation; however, the two leaders declined to shake hands for photographers at the start of their latest talks.

The issue of territory was seen as one of the most intractable on the agenda.

Although the two men were believed to be close to agreement on the amount of territory to be run by the Turkish Cypriot government, there were still disputes about what towns and villages should be included.

Any agreement will mean redrawing existing boundaries and potentially moving thousands of residents from their homes, 42 years after many were displaced when the island was first divided.

If a deal could be reached on territorial changes, negotiators are expected to announce a date for a final summit between the Turkish and Greek Cypriot leaders and three other states involved in the process: Turkey, Greece, and the U.K.

That meeting would focus on security, particularly the presence of 30,000 Turkish troops that remain on the island after a 1974 military coup was followed by Turkey’s intervention as a guarantor power.

Reunification discussions resumed in May 2015, and both sides have repeatedly expressed optimism that a solution would be found by the end of this year.

Once a final agreement is reached, it would be put to both communities in a referendum. A peace deal was approved by Turkish Cypriots in 2004 but rejected by Greek Cypriot voters.

WB

Cyprus reunification talks resume in Switzerland

Turkish, Greek Cypriot leaders tackle tough issue of territory in negotiations to end 42-year split

 News Desk

Turkish and Greek Cypriot leaders gathered at a Swiss town overlooking Lake Geneva on Sunday in an attempt to resolve the final issues that could see the island reunified after four decades of division.

Northern Cyprus President Mustafa Akinci and Greek Cypriot leader Nicos Anastasiades met at Mont Pelerin earlier this month and have returned to tackle the territorial adjustments needed for an anticipated two-state federation.

The two-day negotiation is being overseen by the UN special adviser on Cyprus, Espen Barth Eide, in an effort to solve one of the world’s longest-running political dilemmas.

The issue of territory is seen as one of the most intractable on the agenda.

Although the two leaders are said to have come close to agreeing the amount of territory that should be run by the Turkish Cypriot government -- around 29 percent of the island -- there are still disputes over which towns and villages should be included.

Any agreement will mean redrawing existing boundaries and potentially moving thousands of residents from their current homes, 42 years after many were displaced when the island was first split.

If a deal is reached on territorial changes, negotiators are expected to announce a date for a final summit between the Turkish and Greek Cypriot leaders and the three other states involved in the process -- Turkey, Greece and the U.K.

That meeting will focus on security, particularly the presence of 30,000 Turkish troops that remain based on the island after a 1974 military coup was followed by Turkey’s intervention as a guarantor power.

Akinci and Anastasiades declined to shake hands for photographers at the start of Sunday’s talks.

Reunification discussions resumed in May last year and both sides have repeatedly expressed optimism that a solution would be found by the end of this year.

Once a final agreement is reached it will be put to both communities in a referendum. A peace deal was approved by Turkish Cypriots in 2004 but rejected by Greek Cypriot voters.

WB

More than 120 migrants rescued off Cyprus

The 42 children, 19 women and 62 men were all in good health, including a woman who had given birth at sea and was admitted to hospital as a precaution, a civil defence statement said.

News Desk

Cyprus police rescued 123 migrants believed to be Syrians who were left adrift off the island's northwest coast by a boatman who made off on a jet ski, officials said Thursday.

Police said they were still checking identity papers but at least nine of the migrants had previously been deported from Cyprus.

Police believe that the boat, which was spotted off the coast on Wednesday, had set sail from the Turkish port of Mersin.

The migrants said they had paid $2,200 a head to be brought to the island, the state-run CNA news agency said.

EU member Cyprus lies just 100 kilometres (60 miles) off the Syrian coast but has so far avoided a mass influx of refugees from that country's conflict like that passing through the Balkans to Western Europe.

However, there has been an increase in people smuggling from Turkey in recent months. In October, 83 Syrian migrants were rescued in similar circumstances.

Territory row looms over Cyprus showdown talks

United Nations chief Ban Ki-Moon has said he would like to see a final settlement of the Cyprus conflict before he steps down on December 31.

 News Desk

Rival Cypriot leaders will broach a multi-billion-euro territory dispute next week in Switzerland as part of UN-backed peace talks aimed at solving one of the world's longest-running political crises.

Negotiations are due to discuss the previously intractable issue of territorial adjustments on the Mediterranean resort island -- a main bone of contention during four decades of discord between its Greek- and Turkish-speaking communities.

Cyprus has been divided since 1974, when Turkish troops occupied its northern third in response to an Athens-inspired coup seeking union with Greece.

UN-brokered talks between Greek Cypriot leader Nicos Anastasiades and his Turkish Cypriot counterpart Mustafa Akinci began 17 months ago and have been billed as the island's last best chance for an enduring peace deal.

Anastasiades this week urged both sides to "seize the opportunity not only to eliminate or reduce existing differences... but to achieve such progress on territory which allows us to lead to a final settlement".

But talks have been beset by problems -- including disputes over property and compensation -- and Turkish Cypriot foreign minister Tahsin Ertugruloglu told AFP last month that the peace process was "obviously a failure".

Analysts say that any deal hinges on the issue of territory swaps, which could see a number of Turkish Cypriots displaced from their homes.

"Certain psychological barriers have been broken through if they can actually sit down with maps and share their positions with each other," said Fiona Mullen, a Cyprus-based analyst at Sapienta Economics.

The two leaders will attempt to agree on the internal boundary between two future constituent states, allowing for the return of some areas in Turkish-held northern Cyprus to the Greek Cypriots.

Security 'really the endgame' 

"Territory is naturally connected to property issues and security because it affects the daily life of people living near the borders," Turkish Cypriot analyst Mete Hatay told AFP.

Without an agreement on territory there can be no decision on how many refugees can return to their former homes or how the plans for restoration, exchange or compensation of property -- which could run to billions of euros (dollars) -- will work.

"If they crack this issue then we will be on the way to the big, multi-party discussions on security," Mullen said. "That's really the endgame."

Although initially costly, the International Monetary Fund believes any deal would provide a long-term boost for Cyprus, which needed a multi-billion-euro bailout in 2013 to rescue its teetering economy.

"The potential is a tremendous opportunity in terms of investments and trade in the long run," the IMF's Cyprus representative said this week.

The EU's foreign affairs chief Federica Mogherini, in Nicosia last week, said a Cyprus settlement would be a "game changer" for the entire eastern Mediterranean.

The last major peace push ended in 2004 when a proposal worked out by then-UN Secretary General Kofi Annan was accepted by most Turkish Cypriots but resoundingly dismissed by Greek Cypriots.

The island -- home to several British military bases -- is an EU member but its division remains a major hurdle in Turkey's accession bid.

Any deal would then need to be voted on by both communities.

"There's a general feeling that this is the small window to reach an agreement on all major political issues," Mullen said.

Akinci, during a speech this week, said: "This is not something that we can keep discussing after 50 years for another 50 years. Everyone, including the UN, is aware of this."