KKTC poll winner expects Cyprus talks to resume in May

Eroğlu, who pledged to continue with the talks after winning the presidential election in the first round with 50.38 percent of the vote, said yesterday that the talks may resume where they left off in the second half of May. Dismissing concerns that he would abandon the negotiations as “unfounded,” Eroğlu said the Cyprus dispute could not be left unresolved forever. “The negotiations will continue. Whether the Greek Cypriots are happy with the [election] results does not concern us,” he told the private NTV.

“It's time to find peace,” he told a crowd of supporters after poll results showed he was the winner.

“No one should expect me to leave the negotiating table,” he told the crowd, which cheered, honked horns and set off fireworks at an impromptu victory rally. “We will be at the negotiating table for an agreement that will continue the existence of our people in this land with honor.”

Eroğlu, a long-time politician who currently serves as prime minister, has opposed the principle of single sovereignty in a new Cypriot state that would emerge from the talks between the Turkish and Greek Cypriot leaders, insisting on equal sovereign rights for the Turkish Cypriots. The Greek Cypriots say this is a non-starter.

Reacting to Eroğlu’s election victory, the Greek Cypriot government said on Monday that the vote result would cause “serious problems” for the reunification talks. “Taking into account the declared positions of Mr. Eroğlu against a federation, and for the establishment of two independent states in Cyprus, this could cause very serious problems to the [peace] negotiations,” government spokesman Stefanos Stefanou told reporters. “We expect the international community to exert its influence and pressure on the new leader of the Turkish Cypriot community to continue talks on the proper basis.”

A deadlock in the slow-progressing talks is likely to create further obstacles for Turkey’s bid to join the European Union, in which the Greek Cypriots have the veto right as a full member.

In a statement released on Monday, the EU Commission said: “Now that Mr. Eroğlu has been elected leader of the Turkish Cypriot community it is crucial that the settlement talks go on. The commission encourages Mr. Eroğlu to continue in a constructive spirit the efforts towards settlement and reunification. The commission will continue to offer full support to the leaders’ efforts towards a comprehensive settlement.”

In Ankara, President Abdullah Gül formally congratulated Eroğlu for his win and said he hoped the negotiations would produce a fair and lasting solution in Cyprus. Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu said the Turkish government would continue to support the negotiations irrespective of who is elected president in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (KKTC). “We believe the current policies will be maintained in the Eroğlu era as well,” he told reporters. “The negotiations will continue. The international community should have no concern about that.”

Speaking soon after results showed Eroğlu won the election, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said Ankara wanted a solution to the Cyprus issue by the end of 2010. “The Turkish Cypriots must continue the talks, which is something Eroğlu also believes. It is our aim to find a solution by the end of the year,” Erdoğan said in televised remarks.

Erdoğan’s government has firmly supported Talat since he defeated the KKTC’s first President Rauf Denktaş, a hard-liner who demanded recognition for the KKTC’s independence, in 2005 polls. Talat, a leftist politician committed to reunification of the island as a federal state, did better than expected in Sunday’s polls, winning 42.85 percent, but lost to Eroğlu, an ally of Denktaş.

The Foreign Ministry also was also confident that Eroğlu would continue the talks. “As a leader with deep experience in state affairs, we commend Mr. Eroğlu’s resolve to continue the talks from where they left off,” it said in a statement. “A solution will be reached soon as long as the Greek Cypriots also make the necessary contributions to the process.” The ministry also congratulated Talat for his leadership and vision: “Talat’s dynamism, constructive attitude and sincerity have brought Cyprus negotiations to a fruitful level.”

Talat, who has had more than 70 rounds of talks with Greek Cypriot leader Dimitris Christofias since September 2008, said after the poll results were announced that he remains determined to “help and support” a peace deal. “My dream for a solution to the Cyprus problem continues,” he told reporters at the presidential palace.

In a message to Talat, President Gül praised his “vision and resolve” during the reunification talks with Christofias and said a just solution would have been reached by now had the Greek Cypriots acted with good will.