Talat says Greek Cypriot side has avoided cooperation with Turkish Cypriots

Nicosia, Cyprus. Former Turkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat said on Tuesday that the Greek Cypriot side had “always avoided” cooperation with Turkish Cypriots, ahead of a planned meeting between his successor Tufan Erhurman and President Nikos Christodoulides in the buffer zone on Wednesday.

Talat said the Greek Cypriot side believed cooperation would raise the Turkish Cypriot side’s status and international visibility.

Police and electricity cooperation

Talat said there was currently “indirect cooperation” between the two sides’ police forces. He said the Greek Cypriot side appointed retired police officers to the relevant commission, while the Turkish Cypriot side appointed active officers.

He also referred to the electricity grid, saying the two sides had an interconnected network but that this was not publicly highlighted.

“They collect the money through the chamber of commerce, but they communicate with our engineers via radio,” he said.

Prospects for a settlement

Talat said reaching a comprehensive solution within the United Nations framework appeared difficult under current conditions.

He referred to the rejection of the 2004 Annan plan by Greek Cypriots and said actors were considering how to find a solution that would not be rejected by the Greek Cypriot community.

“A step-by-step solution is being considered,” he said, adding that some measures could now be taken in light of new regional balances.

International messaging

Talat said a fundamental policy for the Turkish Cypriot side should be to avoid being seen as making impossible proposals and bringing the process to a standstill.

He said the Greek Cypriot side had “flipped the table” at the 2017 Crans-Montana talks, and that the Turkish Cypriot side had failed to explain this to the international community.

Talat said the Turkish Cypriot side needed to send the right messages to the international community through the right policies, and that Turkish Cypriots and Turkey needed to demonstrate that they wanted a solution.