Just a few hours after the informal five-party talks on the Cyprus issue, the President of the Republic of Cyprus, Nikos Christodoulides, gives an initial assessment of what happened in Geneva. Speaking to Euronews, he also reveals what he discussed with the EU leadership.
MARIA PSARA, EURONEWS: I have the honor to host in the European Council studio in Brussels the President of the Republic of Cyprus, Nikos Christodoulides, who has just arrived from Geneva, but also having just met with the European leadership. And I want to start with the latter, Mr. President.
How did the meetings with the presidents of the European institutions go?
NIKOS CHRISTODOULIDES, PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF CYPRUS: They were very good meetings, productive, following on from the meeting that took place yesterday in Geneva. And to start with, the involvement of the European Union, the intervention of the European Union, both the telephone call of the President of the European Council, but much more the joint letter of the President of the Commission and the President of the Council was a point of reference just before the conference began on the role, the interest of the European Union in the Cyprus issue and it is something that I hold as particularly important from yesterday's conference in Geneva. A conference which, to use the words of the Secretary General, for the first time since 2017 we have positive developments.
MARIA PSARA, EURONEWS: And this is very important. You see the European Union determined to play an active role only in the context of the negotiation process before and after.
NIKOS CHRISTODOULIDIS, PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF CYPRUS: I see the European Union and I am particularly happy because the European Union also sees two things from our side: our credibility, our political will, but also at the same time the role that the Republic of Cyprus plays more broadly.
The Republic of Cyprus is not only the Cyprus problem, the Republic of Cyprus - and it was something that I just discussed with the President of the European Council - is a state that will continue to be a member state even after the solution of the Cyprus problem and should be able to further strengthen the role that, for example, it plays in the region. And it is within this context that there is this intense interest of the European Union.
I repeat, the letter is a point of reference on the Cyprus issue and the negotiations to resume talks.
MARIA PSARA, EURONEWS: What was Turkey's role in the five-party talks now, Mr. President?
NIKOS CHRISTODOULIDIS, PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF CYPRUS: Turkey's role was the most decisive, you understand and everyone knows it, I don't need to say it, that the decisions will be taken by Turkey in relation to the resumption of talks and the resolution of the Cyprus problem. I am glad because yesterday, in addition to the letter from the European Union which I consider very important, we had the decision to appoint a personal envoy of the Secretary General.
From there, we agreed as of now for the next meeting in July. But you know, what has been avoided is also very important. First, the Turkish Cypriot leader raised issues of cooperation in a number of areas that touch on state sovereignty: hydrocarbons, water and some other issues. And I am glad that our position that such cooperation cannot be done was understood by the Secretary General.
The Turkish Cypriot leader did not want the appointment of a personal envoy of the Secretary-General. This has been avoided. There was the intention to submit it on the basis of public statements that were becoming a specific document in relation to the two-state solution of the Cyprus problem. The whole discussion, the development of the discussion, the positions of the Secretary-General did not allow for such a thing.
So it's not just the positives, it's also what has been avoided in this great effort, where Turkey's role is of crucial importance.
And I also come to this intense interest that we see from Turkey's side in relation to European issues. In relation to the discussions that we are having here in Brussels, finally on the issues of defense, strengthening the architecture of the European Union, we see an increased interest in progress, concrete progress, in Euro-Turkish matters and our message and the message of the European Union was clear: all of this can be examined through specific developments in the Cyprus problem.
MARIA PSARA, EURONEWS: You had a tete-a-tete with the Turkish Foreign Minister, Mr. Fidan, who seemed a little different in this meeting. What exactly did you say?
NIKOS CHRISTODOULIDIS, PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF CYPRUS: The meeting with Mr. Fidan was of a social nature, with whom I had the opportunity to discuss during the extended discussion in the presence of the Secretary General, as well as Mr. Tatar and the representatives of Greece and Britain.
There we had a substantive discussion, because I expressed the readiness of the Republic of Cyprus, for example, for Confidence Building Measures towards the Turkish Cypriots, but also Confidence Building Measures between the Republic of Cyprus and Turkey.
And I expressed my readiness to him, addressing him, so that we can see positive developments in Euro-Turkish relations, if and as long as, I repeat, there are specific developments in the Cyprus issue, as clearly recorded in the conclusions of April 2024.
MARIA PSARA, EURONEWS: Exactly. I want to take you to the issue of European Defense. The issue at the Summit will be competitiveness, of course, but defense will dominate. What would be a successful Summit for you, that is, the result that would satisfy you in relation to defense?
NIKOS CHRISTODOULIDES, PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF CYPRUS: You said very correctly that tomorrow the main issue will be competitiveness. But we will also talk about the presentation by the President of the Committee of the White Paper on Defense issues. Both defense and competitiveness are linked to each other.
How are they connected? With the great goal and the strategic autonomy of the European Union. You cannot have strategic autonomy if you do not have competitiveness, if you are not a strong European Union in competitiveness, if you do not have strong defense. And I am glad, despite the fact that it is the circumstances that pushed us in this direction, the Republic of Cyprus, together with other member states, have been discussing for a long time the need to move forward.
And finally, it passed the Commission today, the White Paper will be presented by the President of the Commission and in June we will have a more in-depth discussion on defence issues. And it is pleasing to see in a period when, you know, these decisions of the 26 and leaving one out on the issue of Ukraine, is not something we see as positive, it creates a precedent that is not positive, but on defence issues I am glad because I see from all 27 Member States this strong desire to finally move forward.
The EU's role in the Middle East and Ukraine
MARIA PSARA, EURONEWS: At the same time, there are developments in the Middle East. The ceasefire has essentially collapsed and I want to ask you about the role of the European Union at this given historical moment in this region, with Trump exactly the opposite and contrary to all this dynamic.
NIKOS CHRISTODOULIDES, PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF CYPRUS: Thank you for your question, because one of the issues we discussed now with the President of the European Council. It is not only that the ceasefire in the Middle East has collapsed, we also have the developments in Syria. We saw unacceptable events last week that are creating, for example, a new wave of migration. They are creating, if you like, problems and challenges in neighboring states. And we really see - or at least this is the assessment in the region - that there is no interest from the United States, as there was before.
So we have an obligation as the European Union to fill this gap.
At the end of the day, we are talking about the European Union's neighborhood and this is one of the key priorities of the Cyprus Presidency that starts in January 2026. We discussed it today with the President of the European Council and I will also organize a special meeting in Cyprus as the Cyprus Presidency, precisely to show our interest. And within this context, I also welcomed the presence of the President of the European Council at the recent Arab League summit. It was very important for us to be there as the European Union.
MARIA PSARA, EURONEWS: At the negotiating table for Ukraine, but we are not yet in the presidency and I wonder if the EU can increase its influence in relation to making the ceasefire in the Ukraine war permanent.
NIKOS CHRISTODOULIDES, PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF CYPRUS: The developments in Ukraine, on the borders of Europe, directly affect the European Union and as the European Union, yes, we must claim a role because no one will give us a role.
We will have a teleconference with the President of Ukraine. There seem to be some positive developments and the European Union is the only one, if you will, that will be accepted to be able to secure any eventual agreement. So we have a role to play. What we need to do is to clearly claim a greater role.
MARIA PSARA, EURONEWS: Thank you very much, Mr. President. Good luck!
Source: Euronews
