CYPRUS: President says Varosha should be returned as goodwill gesture

Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades believes that the return of the fenced off area of Famagusta – known as Varosha – to its legitimate Greek Cypriot inhabitants would be a gesture of goodwill on behalf of Turkey.

He noted that the Greek Cypriot side has made concessions in the Cyprus talks and pointed out that the Turkish Cypriots must respect the Greek Cypriot’s need to feel secure.

The return of the ghost town, he said during an anti-occupation event organised by the city’s municipality, would be a gesture “that could facilitate a change of the atmosphere and create real feelings of trust between the communities”.

“Famagusta is a ghost town, it is not inhabited by Turkish Cypriots, it is not used for purported residential needs, but is kept as a negotiating tool,”, said Anastasiades.

He said that the international community has remained indifferent despite the resolutions that have been adopted on Famagusta.

The return of the town – once the island’s premier tourist resort – as a confidence building measure has been raised many times.

We knew, the President said, that accession into the EU would create the conditions for a solution that would protect both the Greek Cypriots and the Turkish Cypriots through the implementation of EU law.

He stressed that an independent state, member of the European Union does not need guarantees from a third country and called on the Turkish Cypriots to realise that Turkey is protecting its own strategic interests.