Erhürman: I cannot accept the Famagusta port proposal

President Tufan Erhürman made statements on the Cyprus issue during a television programme. Erhürman said that Greek Cypriot leader Nikos Christodoulides had not submitted a written “19-point package” to him. He also assessed a proposal raised concerning Varosha (Maraş) and the Famagusta port.

Erhürman also explained why he did not attend the trilateral meeting in New York. He said he opposed conducting negotiations merely for the sake of holding talks, stating: “I will not negotiate just for the sake of negotiating. I will not keep you dragging on at this table for another ten years.” Noting that Christodoulides’ proposal involved handing Varosha to UN administration and opening the Famagusta port to direct trade under EU control, Erhürman stressed that the Famagusta port is already open.

Erhürman said he had asked Christodoulides whether the direct trade regulation would enter into force and received a negative answer. Saying the proposal was not balanced, he recalled that the same formula had been presented to then-President Mehmet Ali Talat in 2006, and that Talat rejected it. “Twenty years have passed; after 20 years it has been brought back as a new formula. This is not something I can accept.”