The Greek Cypriot Foreign Minister Lillikas, in his interview published in the Greek Cypriot daily Haravgi has, once again, revealed the intransigent policy of the Greek Cypriot side vis a vis the Cyprus problem.

On the one hand, Lillikas and other Greek Cypriot authorities are making allegations to mislead the international community about their readiness to implement and achieve progress on the 8 July Agreement, on the other they have demonstrated that their efforts are far from being sincere by confessing to the unfeasibility of a momentum regarding the settlement of the Cyprus problem until 2008. Furthermore, Lillikas by referring to the “preparatory process” which is to last until 2008, in line with the long pursued delaying policy of the Greek Cypriot side, is leading the 8 July Agreement toward an impasse. In view of these declarations, the Greek Cypriot administration’s pledge that it shall work to commence the substantive negotiations until 31 March 2007 does not go beyond mere words. At this juncture, it is amply clear that the constructive stance of the Turkish Cypriot side alone will not suffice for attaining the desired outcome.

In his statement, Lillikas did not refrain from announcing the Greek Cypriot intention to block even the minor developments that would contribute to the economy of the Turkish Cypriot side by using the unfair advantage gained through its EU membership. Notwithstanding the impression given by the Greek Cypriot Foreign Minister at the EU Summit in Brussels that they would not create any difficulty regarding the adoption of the Direct Trade Regulation, his statements prove the contrary. He also has the courage to express indirectly his intention to render the adoption of the Direct Trade Regulation, which is expected to be adopted without any amendments in January 2007, unacceptable through attachment of pre-conditions. The said Resolution which could not be implemented for more than two years due to Greek Cypriot obstructions, must be approved in its original form as proposed by the EU Commission without any pre-conditions attached to it and in a way that will give an end to the isolation of the Turkish Cypriot side.

It has been observed, once again, with deep regret that the Greek Cypriot side has the intention of settling the Cyprus problem by exploiting Turkey’s EU accession negotiations in accordance with the Greek Cypriot aspirations and has been striving to shift the ground for a settlement of the Cyprus problem towards the EU framework toward this goal.