Ankara, Turkey. Turkey will be required to show flexibility on the Cyprus issue, Cyprus government spokesman Konstantinos Letymbiotis said on Wednesday as he commented on meetings taking place on the sidelines of a Nato summit in Ankara. He said progress in relations between the European Union and Turkey is directly linked to developments on Cyprus.
Meetings on summit sidelines
Letymbiotis was asked about planned meetings between Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, European Council President Antonio Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. He said the meetings were of great importance, especially regarding the Cyprus issue.
He said it has now been understood that relations between Europe and Turkey can act as a catalyst in efforts to restart negotiations on the Cyprus problem.
EU-Turkey relations and Cyprus
Letymbiotis said it is known what Turkey is seeking and demanding regarding progress in relations between the European Union and Turkey, and that this would certainly be discussed in Erdogan’s meeting with von der Leyen.
He added that it has been clearly set out how such progress can be achieved, and that at the core of this progress are Turkey’s obligations related to Cyprus.
He said the progress of relations between Europe and Turkey is fully interconnected with progress on the Cyprus issue.
Contacts involving Christodoulides
Letymbiotis said President Nikos Christodoulides had held a telephone conversation with von der Leyen on Tuesday in view of Wednesday’s meeting. He added that arrangements are being made for Christodoulides and von der Leyen to meet in person next week.
He said the meeting would take place to make an overall assessment of Wednesday’s meeting and of all the contacts taking place during this period.
Efforts toward enlarged meeting
He said the contacts are part of efforts aimed at convening an enlarged meeting on the Cyprus problem involving the island’s two sides, the three guarantor powers Greece, Turkey and the United Kingdom, and the United Nations.
Letymbiotis said he did not know whether Wednesday’s meetings would determine whether and when the informal enlarged meeting would take place.