It may be too late for Varosha

Cyprus talks Greek Cypriot negotiator Ambassador Andreas Mavroyiannis fears it could be too late to save Varosha and reunification if something is not done very soon.

He said what is happening in opening up the ghost town of Varosha is “dramatic” and “perhaps the final stage of the complete destruction of the prospects of a solution and reunification of the country.”

Mavroyiannis spoke during a discussion on a policy text: Cyprus problem after the informal five-party summit –The Proposal for a Normal State, written by the University of Nicosia Professor Andreas Theophanous.

“What Turkey and the representatives of the puppet-state are seeking, as their priority, are not two separate states in Cyprus but two entities.

“So that, on the one hand, they have their independence, and on the other hand, Turkey can control the whole of Cyprus and have a hand and a say in the EU.

“This is the real and final goal of the Turkish side.”

He said the rise of hardline Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar has seen the proposed two-state solution and sovereign equality dominate the political agenda.

“This, in fact, is a deterioration of the concept of two states…this is the narrative we have to face”.

Mavroyianis argued that what Tatar and Turkey are seeking is an entity that will have some very specific joint responsibilities and when it collapses “because it will collapse, leave us all hanging, and there will be no possibility of returning to the status quo ante”.

Work is being carried out in the once strictly inaccessible military area to make Varosha accessible.

Under United Nations resolutions, Varosha should be returned to its legal Greek Cypriot inhabitants.