Erhurman urges Christodoulides to avoid initiatives that undermine trust

Nicosia, Cyprus. Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhurman said on Wednesday that he had told President Nikos Christodoulides to refrain from initiatives which undermine trust during a meeting earlier in the day.

He said the discussions focused on confidence-building measures and methodology, while no agreement was reached on new measures.

Meeting discussions

Erhurman said the two sides conveyed their views on external and internal initiatives which, he said, are eroding the existing level of trust.

He said it was crucial to create the “conducive climate” referred to by United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres if the process is to move forward.

“To this end, we stressed the need to both implement new confidence-building measures and refrain from initiatives which undermine trust,” he said.

Concerns over recent initiatives

Erhurman had earlier said trust was being eroded by initiatives taken by the Greek Cypriot side to cancel international events in the north, including a children’s football camp organised by FC Barcelona and a music festival in Kyrenia.

He also criticised arrests by the Republic of Cyprus of people accused of illegally using or selling property in the north owned by Greek Cypriots before 1974, as well as the Republic’s efforts to deepen relations with the State of Israel.

Under these circumstances, Erhurman said, it was evident to Turkish Cypriots, Greek Cypriots and the international community that “writing history together” was not an easy task.

Further meeting expected

Erhurman is expected to meet Christodoulides again next week.