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The President's interlocutors see the prospect of his proposal and how the linking of the Euro-Turkish issues with the lifting of the deadlock can play a catalytic role in the UN efforts, Government Spokesman Konstantinos Letibiotis said today.
Speaking to reporters at the Presidential Palace, and asked about the President's recent contacts in Strasbourg and Vienna, and the reactions the President received to his proposal for more active EU engagement, the Spokesman said that "those who attended the President's speech before the European Parliament in Strasbourg, will have seen from the statements of the MEPs that followed from all European political groups and the Presidents of the largest European political groups, that the President's proposal for a more active and substantial involvement of the European Union in the effort to break the deadlock is recognised.
They see the perspective, they see how this proposal, this linking of the Euro-Turkish issues with the lifting of the deadlock and the course of the negotiations, can play a catalytic role in the efforts of the United Nations, because it is always under the auspices of the United Nations that the negotiations take place.
What I can tell you is that from the very first moment he took office, the President of the Republic has set very high as a paramount objective the removal of this deadlock, a prolonged quagmire in which we find ourselves. He has put forward and has put forward a very specific proposal, a proposal that he is presenting in all his bilateral contacts and there are several of them at the moment, either in private meetings or through diplomatic contacts that are taking place and we are seeing a response.
The President of the Republic will not stop, we will not stop this effort, we believe that, yes, there is a prospect. We believe that the European partners recognize the benefits that can come through the President's proposal and we are the first to say that we are already at the negotiating table and we call on both Turkey and our Turkish Cypriot compatriots to come to the negotiating table, to start negotiations from where they have stopped on the basis of a bizonal bicommunal federation."
Asked how there will be something tangible, and whether we will seek to change anything in the Conclusions of the Summit that follows, the Spokesman said that "there are various ways or avenues that can be pursued towards that. What makes sense, what has substance at the moment, and that is where the President's contacts are focused, is for this proposal to receive the support of our European partners. That is what we need to see, and if the European Union has anything to prove, it is that where there is a will, they will be able to find the appropriate channels, the appropriate methods to implement this proposal. But what is important today is that we should be able to present this proposal, that the President himself should analyse it, and that there should be an exchange of views, which is what is happening. The meeting yesterday with the Austrian Federal Chancellor and the joint communiqué that has been issued, which clearly shows Austria's support for this proposal, is typical."
Asked to comment on information about the President's communication with the UN Secretary General, the Spokesman said that "when there is something that can be announced, it will be announced. There was no scheduled, for yesterday, any telephone communication."
Asked if the President will hold a press conference on the 100 days after assuming power, the Spokesman said that "you will be informed as soon as it is finalized and as soon as the date is finalized. It will be a first assessment of the government's achievements, of the government's work by the President of the Republic himself."
Asked to comment on reports by AKEL and former President of DISY Mr Averof Neophytou, the Spokesman said that "I believe that if there is one issue on which there should be no ideological differences or political confrontations, it is our national issue.
The President of the Republic, where the heart of Europe beats in the European Parliament, received the acceptance of his proposal, was recognized by all European political forces.
I am sure that the patriotism of all of us, the pure love for our country, the pure agony for the solution of our national problem, will prevail over any petty party or political differences. Besides, the elections are over and our national issue is the supreme issue facing the Government of the day.
This Government is the Government of the whole of Cyprus.
The President of the Republic has been making efforts from the very first moment to mobilize, to resume the talks on the basis of the agreed framework.
We call once again on all the political forces of the country to assist, each political force from its own point of view, so that this proposal can be put on track and move towards implementation, with the aim of the resumption of negotiations and the final and viable solution of the Cyprus problem.
(PM/NG/SX)
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