UN Secretary General’s Personal Envoy on Cyprus María Ángela Holguín is holding a series of meetings with political party leaders in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, during her third day of political engagements.
Holguin’s first visit on Wednesday was to the National Unity Party (UBP) followed by the main opposition Republican Turkish Party (CTP) and the Peoples’ Party (HP).
As part of her engagements on the island, the Personal Envoy to the UN Secretary-General, María Ángela Holguín, visited the UBP Headquarters on Wednesday morning and met with the UBP’s leader and Prime Minister Ünal Üstel.
Foreign Minister Tahsin Ertuğruloğlu, UBP General Secretary Oğuzhan Hasiopoğlu, and other party officials were also present at the meeting.
The UBP leader and Prime Minister Ünal Üstel conveyed to the UN diplomat that a new negotiations process could only begin with the acceptance of the sovereign equality of the Turkish Cypriot people.
In a written statement issued after the meeting, the UBP’s General Secretary Oğuzhan Hasipoğlu said that they had conveyed to the UN envoy the Turkish Cypriot side’s readiness to sit down at the table to negotiate a two-state solution.
“We told Ms. Holguín that a federal settlement is off the table for good,” he said.
Hasipoğlu reminded that the personal envoy had only been appointed for a period of six months for the sole purpose of examining whether there was common ground to launch a new process.
The UBP General Secretary said that they had also explained to Holguín that the absence of conflict on the island for the past 50 years was owed to the presence of the Turkish Armed Forces on the island.
“There is now a new era. Any negotiation process can only begin with the confirmation of our sovereign equality and equal international status. This is the only common ground acceptable for [the restart of] negotiations,” Hasipoğlu said, adding that there was no point in insisting on a federal solution forumla which had proven to be unsuccessful attemp after attemp.
“As the Secretary-General previously told us in Geneva, it is now time to discuss different issues and new things. We, as the Turkish Cypriot people, have never done wrong to the international community. We have positively approached all solution plans and proposals tabled under the auspicies of the UN. It is the Greek Cypriot side which has all proposals; it is unacceptable for them to be rewarded while we are still being punished. This unjust situation must end as soon as possible,” he said.
Hasipoğlu also said that the UBP fully supported President Ersin Tatar’s vision for a two-state solution based on cooperation which was also backed by Ankara.
Later in the morning, Holguín visited the main opposition Republican Turkish Party (CTP) where she met with the party leader Tufan Erhürman.
The party’s General Secretary Asım Akansoy and other party officials were also present at the meeting.
Following her visits to the UBP and CTP, the UN personal envoy visited the People’s Party (HP) where she met with HP leader Kudret Özersay.