Germany calls for compromise at Cyprus talks

By Ayhan Simsek

BERLIN

German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel has called on Turkish and Greek Cypriot leaders to show courage and make compromises in peace talks set for next week.

Speaking after a Berlin meeting with UN special envoy Espen Barth Eide on Thursday, Gabriel claimed negotiations had already cleared “many roadblocks”.

“Now it is important not to give up and move forward in the final track with courage and willingness to compromise in order to reach an agreement that would be acceptable to all sides,” Gabriel said.

The UN has recently announced that talks between Turkish Cypriot President Mustafa Akinci and Greek Cypriot administration leader Nicos Anastasiades will resume next Tuesday after a two-month hiatus.

Gabriel promised Germany’s continued support for a negotiated settlement.

“Germany wholeheartedly and strongly supports this negotiation process, as reunification of would be a great success for all the parties and for the whole of Europe,” he said.

Cyprus remains divided since 1974, when Turkey intervened as guarantor power, in response to military coup in the island which aimed to unite it with Greece.

This led to emergence of an independent Turkish Cypriot state in the north and a Greek Cypriot administration in the south.

Cypriot issues remain unsolved despite a series of efforts by the UN which resumed in May 2015.

The main goal is to find a political solution as the sides seek to reunify the island under a federal system after more than 40 years of division.

Cyprus’ three guarantors -- Turkey, Greece and the United Kingdom -- were assigned when it gained independence from Britain in 1960.