An idea has been floated for there to be three “tables” of negotiations set up for talks to resolve the Cyprus problem, the government confirmed on Wednesday.
The first “table” would be based on the governance of a future Cyprus after a solution and would be composed of representatives of the Greek Cypriot community, the Turkish Cypriot community and the United Nations.
The second “table” would concern guarantees, and would comprise representatives of Cyprus’ two communities, the UN and the country’s three guarantor powers, Greece, Turkey and the United Kingdom.
The third and final “table” would concern security and would comprise all those sat at the second table with the exception of the UK.
Newspaper Phileleftheros had reported on Wednesday morning that the idea had first been floated by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, though President Nikos Christodoulides and Foreign Minister Constantinos Kombos moved later in the day to say it had actually been the brainchild of Christodoulides himself.
Speaking after his meeting with European Council president-designate Antonio Costa on Wednesday, Christodoulides said the reports that the creation of three separate negotiation tables was Guterres’ idea “does not correspond with reality”.
“It was not [Guterres’] idea, it was my proposal which I made in the context of the discussion and as an indication of the preparation we have made, but also as an indication of our readiness to start negotiations,” he said.
Kombos said Christodoulides had “submitted a series of suggestions and proposals at the dinner, precisely with the aim of showing that our side is not only acting in good faith as it is expressing publicly but is also willing to do so at the table”.
“The issue of separate negotiation tables is something which was put forward by [Christodoulides] and not by [Guterres]. Guterres accepted that the approach would be useful, and it is now up to him to evaluate it,” he added.
The newspaper reported that Christodoulides had told the National Council on Tuesday that Guterres had told him and Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar he was “determined to continue” efforts to resolve the Cyprus problem, and that through this he could “send a message to the entire region”.
Additionally, it was reported that Christodoulides “appears ready” to concern the matter of governance based on the principles of there being one sovereignty, one citizenship, and one international personality of a future Cyprus, as well as insisting that a future Cyprus be legally a continuation of the current Republic.
Christodoulides also reportedly told the National Council he was ready to announce and implement more confidence-building measures, including the possible creation of a “youth commission” and a “truth commission”, and a civil society advisory body which would discuss in parallel the matters raised in negotiations.
Phileleftheros also reported that Christodoulides had said at the October 15 dinner that the European Union “would not accept” a second Cypriot state as a member.
To this, Tatar reportedly said, “why not? Today, men become women and vice versa!”
