Without a comprehensive settlement of the Cyprus issue, there can be no sustainable de-escalation in the Eastern Mediterranean, European Commission Executive Vice-President for Cohesion and Reforms Raffaele Fitto said on Thursday, during the European Parliament plenary session in Strasbourg, in a debate entitled ‘Escalatory incidents in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Aegean following persistent Turkish provocations’.
Fitto, who is also the Commission’s Special Representative for the Cyprus issue, stressed in his closing remarks that Greece and Cyprus have the EU’s ‘full solidarity’. He reiterated that sustainable de-escalation in Greco-Turkish relations and in the Eastern Mediterranean as a whole is a key element for regional stability and security, as well as for progress in EU-Trkiye relations in a gradual, proportionate and reversible manner.
Referring specifically to the Cyprus issue, he said that ‘without a comprehensive settlement of the Cyprus problem, it would be impossible to achieve sustainable de-escalation in the Eastern Mediterranean’. He added that the EU remains committed to a comprehensive settlement of the Cyprus issue within the United Nations framework, in accordance with UN Security Council resolutions and the principles on which the Union is founded.
The debate attracted considerable interest from MEPs, who intervened with references to developments in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Aegean, relations with Turkey, as well as issues concerning Cyprus and Greece.
More specifically, Democratic Rally (DISY) and European People’s Party MEP Loucas Fourlas referred to hundreds of violations of Greek airspace and questioned whether Greece and Cyprus are treated in the same way as other member states on security issues. He also referred to the casus belli and to the obstruction of energy projects, describing such actions as threats to the security of Greece and Cyprus.
DISY and EPP MEP Michalis Hadjipantela said that Turkey’s actions concern not only Greece and Cyprus, but the sovereignty of the EU itself. He referred to Cyprus as a country that remains partly occupied and stressed that Trkiye is moving away from its European perspective.
AKEL and The Left MEP, Giorgos Georgiou, referred to the ‘Blue Homeland’ doctrine, Turkish plans for marine parks, the Greece-Cyprus electricity interconnection project and statements by the Turkish President in favour of a two-state solution in Cyprus. He stressed that Greece and Cyprus are EU Member States and, questioning the Union’s response to these developments, asked: ‘Europe, quo vadis?’
DIKO and Socialists and Democrats (S and D) MEP, Costas Mavrides, referred to the continuing occupation of EU territory in Cyprus and to violations of the sovereign rights of Greece and Cyprus. He criticised the policy of the so-called positive agenda towards Turkey and questioned why the EU imposes sanctions on Russia but not on Turkey.
ELAM and European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) MEP, Geadis Geadi, also criticised the EU’s stance towards Trkiye, referring to claims over Greek islands, energy projects and the presence of Turkish troops in Cyprus. He called for measures and sanctions, adding that without action by the EU there can be no deterrence.
Cyprus has been divided since 1974, when Turkey invaded and occupied its northern third. Repeated rounds of UN-led peace talks have so far failed to yield results due to Turkish intransigence. The latest round of negotiations, in July 2017 at the Swiss resort of Crans-Montana ended inconclusively.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, whose term nears its end, announced he would convene another meeting in broader format, after adequate preparation, but gave no timeline. He secured to that end the consensus of both sides and of the guarantor powers. María Angela Holguín, Guterres’ Personal Envoy on Cyprus, is tasked to engage with the parties. Executive Vice-President Raffaele Fitto acts as the European Commission’s Special Representative for Cyprus, succeeding EU special envoy Johannes Hahn.