Germany’s position in favor of a solution to the political issue of Cyprus with a “bizonal federation and representation of the two communities in the leadership of the state”, based on the decisions of the United Nations, was reiterated a while ago by Chancellor Olaf Scholz, during a joint press conference with the president of the Republic of Cyprus, Nikos Christodoulidis, stressing his government’s willingness to contribute to the restart of negotiations, but also to ensuring good neighborly relations in the Eastern Mediterranean. For his part, Mr. Christodoulidis assured of his intention to restart the talks for the solution of the Cyprus issue and for this he asked for more active involvement of the European Union, as well as the support of Germany.

“Germany still supports the solution of a bizonal federation with representation of the two communities in the leadership. The basis for this is the decisions of the United Nations. For the stalled negotiation process to finally get a new impetus, this of course requires political courage from all participants and, as I know, there is the will to do something, we talked about it at length. We want to help. Germany is willing to contribute in order to build mutual trust and we are willing – if that is desired – to support the negotiation process,” said Mr. Scholz. Referring to the situation in the Eastern Mediterranean, he spoke of “great economic prospects” mainly in the energy sector and for this, he noted, good neighborly relations are particularly important, for the benefit of all the peoples of the region. He stated with conviction that “open issues can be resolved through dialogue on the basis of international law”.

Nikos Christodoulidis stressed the need to promote the restart of negotiations to resolve the political issue of Cyprus, pointing out that “the Cyprus issue is a European problem” and asking for a “decisive contribution” of the EU to the resumption of talks – always under the auspices of the United Nations . As he clarified, the EU cannot replace the United Nations, but provide additional support to their efforts. “The United Nations is our safety net,” he said characteristically. “The EU has every tool and every incentive that can lead to a win-win situation. Good for the Cypriot people, the EU, Turkey, and the whole region. Germany, as an active member state of the Union, can contribute to this”, added the Cypriot president and referred to the “decisive role” of Berlin in Greece’s relations with Turkey and the “decisive” role of Germany to stop the violations of the Cypriot EEZ. Mr. Soltz also stated that he was particularly “impressed” by the great willingness of the Cypriot side to revive the negotiation process and pointed out that today’s personal discussion was very important to him so that he could then delve deeper into the issue with the rest of the EU partners.

Answering a question about the expectations from the elections in Turkey, Mr. Christodoulidis noted that the decisions of the Turkish people are respected and added that he certainly does not want escalation, but cooperation within the framework of international law. Mr. Soltz on the same issue stated that the issue now is “to take advantage of the opportunity for good development, for good neighborliness and, as we said we will contribute as in the past and hopefully we can make progress.”

The two leaders also appeared to agree on the need for full support of Ukraine from the EU. “We must tighten the sanctions and make sure that they are not circumvented,” said the German chancellor, while the president of the Republic of Cyprus emphasized that his country is “on the right side of history” and cannot accept the violation of any country’s territorial integrity, has applied all sanctions from the beginning and will continue to do so. He even pointed out the need for the decisions to be implemented by everyone, in order for them to be effective. Responding to a question about the cost to Cyprus of the sanctions related to tankers, Mr. Christodoulidis reiterated that the Republic of Cyprus applies all sanctions, but also pointed out that “the EU should intervene in order to support the sectors” which they are affected by the correct, as he clarified, decisions of Brussels.

The president of the Republic of Cyprus also thanked Germany for its practical solidarity in the immigration issue and stressed the need for other countries to follow its example. He added that the EU must take decisions in relation to the distribution of burdens, but also to dealing with the causes of migration.