Referring to the obstacles in Turkey's European course, Mr. Straw says that "the elephant in the room is the Cyprus one. When I took over as Minister of Foreign Affairs eleven years ago, I was impartial in the Cyprus issue. "But over time, I became more impatient."
He adds that “in 2004 an agreement was signed in Burgenstock with the Greek Cypriot side. But Papadopoulos did not stay true to the agreement. The EU became hostage of the Greek Cypriot Administration. "This situation is damaging the EU," he said.
Mr Straw argued that if the situation did not change, the international community should take into account the division, saying "division is another way of resolving territorial disputes".
According to Mr. Straw, "the current situation is due to southern Cyprus and not the Turkish Cypriots".
Mr Straw also said he was "disappointed that the French-Greek Cypriot bloc is blocking Turkey's talks" with the EU.
Source: Typos.com.cy