The Republic of Cyprus already protested Turkey’s illegal activities in the buffer zone, both to the UN and the EU, President of Cyprus Nikos Christodoulides said on Friday evening. In statements to local media in Thessaloniki, Greece, on the sidelines of an event at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, the President also underlined Nicosia’s humanitarian role in the Middle East.

Responding to a journalist’s question about the latest violations in the buffer zone near Denia, President Christodoulides said that Nicosia already protested to the UN, the Permanent Members of the Security Council and the EU. He added that they are monitoring the issue. “It is true that there are, generally, violations inside the buffer zone on the part of Turkey. We are dealing with the violations, but at the same time they cause a resentment, if you like, within the framework of preparations to resume talks,” the President noted.

When asked if he would discuss the possibility for a permanent US military base on Cyprus, President Christodoulides said that “forces from both the US as well as from other EU countries use Cyprus mainly, exclusively for operations of humanitarian nature.” He referred to the latest developments in the broader Middle East, saying that Cyprus plays a humanitarian role in order to offer assistance for the evacuation of third-country nationals.

To another question, whether he asks something from a meeting, scheduled on November 8, between the Greek foreign Minister, Giorgos Gerapetritis, and his Turkish counterpart, Hakan Fidan, the President responded that, at a meeting with Gerapetritis last Thursday, he asked him to convey the messages that have constantly been conveyed through the dialogue between Greece and Turkey.

Cyprus has been divided since 1974, when Turkey invaded and occupied its northern third. Repeated rounds of UN-led peace talks have so far failed to yield results. The latest round of negotiations, in July 2017 at the Swiss resort of Crans-Montana ended inconclusively.

The violations in the buffer zone include an incident in August 2023,Turkish Cypriots punched and kicked a group of international peacekeepers who obstructed crews illegally working on a road that would encroach on a UN controlled buffer zone in the area of Pyla, in the Larnaca district.

Further violations occurred in December 2023, when Turkish occupation forces entered the buffer zone in the area of Agios Dometios, and installed on an uninhabited residence there a metal mast, on which a rotating camera and antenna were mounted.

In a recent report, the UN Secretary General notes the importance of the parties refraining from taking unilateral actions both in and adjacent to the buffer zone that could raise tensions.

Source: Parikiaki.com