Deputy President of the opposition party Democratic Rally (DISY) Averof Neophytou said that “things are getting worse at all levels” in the climate between the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot communities.
His remarks came after a regular meeting of leaders and representatives of Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot political parties on Wednesday.
The regular meetings including all parties have been going on for some time but one participant said that the meetings are normally meanigless affairs where the whole meeting is spent just agreeing the bland wording of the joint statement afterwards.
“They exchanged views on the current situation concerning the prospects for a solution of the Cyprus problem”, the joint communique issued after yesterday’s meeting said.
A minor disruption emphasised the deterioration in relations between the two sides. Politicians were left without coffee as the catering company that normally crosses from the north to Ledra Palace was refused access from the Turkish Cypriot checkpoint and told to go via the drive-through checkpoint some 10 minutes’ drive and 20 minutes’ queuing away instead.
The incident was criticized by leaders of G/C and T/C political parties.
In statements after the meeting Deputy President of Democratic Party Nicos Cleanthous noted that “these unimportant incidents hide political expediencies which the illegal regime practices”.
President of the United Democrats Michalis Papapetrou said the incident “reminds us that as long as the Cyprus problem remains unsolved, Turkey and its troops are dominant in the north”.
Leader of Peace and Democracy Movement Mustafa Akinci said he could not explain why the incident occurred and described it as a “ridiculous problem and a very stupid act of behaviour”.
Asked about the climate during the meeting, he said he has been participating in these meetings from the very beginning adding that for many years “we have thought that these meetings could not replace intercommunal talks.
“The passage of time definitely in the short run is not for the interest of the T/Cs and in the long run is not for the benefit of the G/Cs either”, he concluded.
