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- Ελληνικά
The President of the Republic Mr.Nikos Christodoulides chaired a meeting of the National Council at the Presidential Palace today.
After the meeting, the Government Spokesman Mr: "The President of the Republic, first of all, briefed the political leadership of the country on the latest developments in the Cyprus problem, following his latest meeting with the Personal Envoy of the United Nations (UN) Secretary General (SG) Ms. Holguín, in Brussels, after their two meetings in Cyprus, and after the President's meeting with the UN Secretary General in Jordan.
He informed the members of the National Council about the ongoing coordination with both the Greek Government and the EU towards the resumption of negotiations.
He also informed that Ms Holguín will deliver her report to the Secretary General on 10 July, while the informal briefing of the Security Council will take place on 11 July. The Secretary-General will study Ms. Holguín's report and subsequently announce the next steps.
We, once again, express our readiness to resume negotiations and will continue to take initiatives, as we have done in the past, precisely in the context of trying to create a positive climate for the resumption of negotiations.
Then, the President of the Republic, at the request of the Ecologists' Movement, informed the National Council about the cases that have come to light and are being brought to justice, concerning the usurpation of Greek Cypriot properties in our occupied areas.
Under no circumstances does the Republic of Cyprus politicize an issue of human rights, an issue of legitimacy, an issue of justice. All measures are being taken, possibly measures that should have been taken years ago, always within the framework of legality to end the illegal usurpation of Greek Cypriot properties in the occupied areas and we will do everything possible to punish those responsible. The individual right to property cannot be questioned.
There was also a discussion and briefing on the draft reports of the UN Secretary General on his good offices and on the presence of the peacekeeping force in Cyprus. There will be an official statement on the part of the Foreign Ministry with the official release of the reports.
We see that the established practice of recent years is being followed, where we see an approach of equal distances and the numerical equation. We maintain the same conviction, as we have done publicly in the past, as to the objectivity that should govern these reports and as to the presentation of the data and the facts. It is something, after all, which the President of the Republic has also referred to, and [WE HAVE REFERRED TO] officially as the Republic of Cyprus many times.
What we wish to reiterate as the Republic of Cyprus is that we are taking all those measures to protect our sovereign rights and our security. Besides, we note that, and in accordance with Resolution 186 of 1964 which sets out the terms of reference of the peacekeeping force, the mission of the force must be in the interest of maintaining international peace and security. This means that we should be concerned about the militarization that we see in the occupied territories, which falls within the terms of reference of the peacekeeping force, and should always bear in mind that we are in a defensive position, while the other side is in an offensive posture.
Finally, the members of the National Council were briefed by both the National Security Adviser and the President of the Republic on developments and the situation in our region. The Republic of Cyprus is in contact with all the states in the region, as a result of the excellent relations we maintain with the states in the region, and what we want to publicly reiterate, as we have been reiterating from the very beginning, is our conviction that any further escalation must be avoided and that any further escalation of the crisis is in the interest of both the region and the entire international community to be avoided."
Asked whether Ms. Holguín is ultimately staying or leaving, the Spokesperson said that "we cannot prejudge the decisions of the UN Secretary General himself. After he receives Ms. Holguín's report, he will also announce his intentions on the next steps regarding the Cyprus problem."
Asked if the issue of the 28 irregular migrants was discussed at the National Council, the Spokesman said: "It was something that was discussed in public, it was something that was expected to be discussed today before the National Council, and that is the right thing to do. The role of the National Council that we understand, and we are happy to say that the entire political forces understand it in the same way, is that it is an institution in which there is not only information from the President of the Republic, but also an honest exchange of views, and this is what happened today."
And because I saw the clarifying statements of the Secretary General of AKEL, this is exactly what happened. It was a discussion without any tension. The meeting of the National Council was held in a very constructive atmosphere and it proves the usefulness of the institution of the National Council, it proves the usefulness of having this exchange of views to coordinate the next steps, the next actions, because if it is something that we must underline, if it is something that we must clarify and if it is something that we must be satisfied with, it is that all the political forces of the country remain steadfastly committed, and this must satisfy us, to the "The initiatives taken by the Republic of Cyprus, by the Government in all directions are already known, whether they concern the 14 unilateral measures announced by President Christodoulides to our Turkish Cypriot compatriots or whether they concern the EU level, as regards the very constructive stance that our country has taken on the Euro-Turkish issue, a stance that is welcomed by the international community, but which also demonstrates the constructive, sober approach that we will follow if it is always linked to the course of action on the Cyprus problem.
It is these initiatives that we will continue to take, it is also the written proposals, as the President of the Republic himself has mentioned, that he has given to Mrs Holguín. It is our own pursuits, our own efforts that have achieved the appointment of Ms. Holguín as the UN Secretary General's personal envoy, and many others. This is precisely where our conviction that it is through such initiatives that the right positive climate for the resumption of negotiations can be created, provided that this sincere political will is also demonstrated by the other side."
He added: "We will constantly take initiatives. Our will, our sincere intention to resume negotiations is internationally accepted and internationally recognized, because there are concrete examples, both over time and by the Government over the last 16 months, that prove that we are contributing and will contribute positively in the best possible way."
Asked about Ms. Holguín's report, the Spokesman said: "We, as we have stated about the Secretary-General's reports, whether they are about good offices or the peacekeeping force, what we expect from every report is objectivity, with objectivity to record both facts and data. At the same time, it is a given that Ms. Holguín, as the Secretary-General's personal envoy, her terms of reference derive from the UN Secretary-General, whose terms of reference derive from the UN Security Council. And it is clearly recorded in all the relevant resolutions, the clear framework, the agreed framework of a bizonal bicommunal federation with political equality.
We constantly, persistently, daily reiterate our own intention, our own readiness to return to the negotiating table from the point where negotiations have been suspended, to achieve a comprehensive solution on the basis of a bizonal bicommunal federation with political equality, and any reference to this intention is not only positive, but also self-evident."
(PM/NZ/NYAN)
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