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The Turkish president has ignited a new source of conflict when dealing with the EU: the reopening of the ghost town of Varosha in Cyprus. The ancient resort town is the stone symbol of division.
A ghost town: the Turkish army occupies the old tourist stronghold of Varosha.
Photo: Katia Christodoulou (Keystone)
If international politics were a brilliantly lit fairground stage with jugglers, knife throwers, mirror shooters, magicians and cone players, then the performances of the Turkish head of state Recep Tayyip Erdogan would certainly be the main attraction. Ankara man solves almost every week a new crisis, he makes a completely unpredictable move, he surprises his friends, he has little of that right now, his opponents, he has many, and the public.
Erdogan’s latest coup is the reopening of an abandoned beach in divided Cyprus: the ghost town of Varosha has been a restricted military area since the Turkish invasion in 1974. The affiliation of the area between the Republic of Cyprus and the “Turkish Republic Northern Cyprus “, which only Turkey recognizes as a state, is controversial, and the matter itself is a kick in the shins of those responsible in the EU.
Slide merkel
And probably also a blow to German Chancellor Angela Merkel: Germany holds the Presidency of the EU Council and has been trying to mediate between the Community and Turkey for months. Unaffected by the legal position of the divided Mediterranean island of Cyprus, the government of northern Cyprus, a close ally of Ankara, announced on Tuesday that a first section of Varosha beach would reopen this Thursday.
When the Prime Minister of Northern Cyprus, Ersin Tatar, announced this, he confidently added that the resort was “without a doubt” on the territory of Northern Cyprus; Varosha is “a national concern beyond all disputes and political debates.” This contradicts the position of the Republic of Cyprus and also all the resolutions of the UN Security Council.
But that didn’t have to bother Tatar. He felt strong because he had the Turkish head of state by his side. Erdogan also claimed in the joint appearance that Varosha was clearly part of Northern Cyprus and slapped Brussels in the face: “At the last EU summit we saw again that the people of Northern Cyprus are being ignored. Turkey will not allow this injustice to continue. “
Ankara now openly complains that the EU has allowed its members Greece and Cyprus to hold it “hostage.”
The Turkish head of state made it clear that on the Varosha issue, his country would once again side with those in the world who are denied their rights. After the rebellious Syrians, the civil war-ravaged Libyans and the Azerbaijanis who waged a self-destructive war, the Northern Cypriots now enjoy Turkish protection, naturally because of Ankara’s supposed strategic advantage.
With the opening of Varosha, Erdogan and his puppet Northern Cyprus puppet alienate not only the leadership of the Republic of Cyprus, but also the EU. After the impression was given at the last EU summit a few days ago that Turkey was involved in important issues such as the dispute over natural gas Mediterranean Sea Having approached the political principle of the carrot and the stick, Ankara now openly complains that the community had once again been “taken hostage” by its members Greece and Cyprus at the top. Turkey was again denied its rights.
It triggers a new crisis almost every week: Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Photo: Keystone
Erdogan apparently does not accept that his country will continue to face sanctions after the summit if Ankara must send research vessels in search of natural gas again to maritime areas claimed by Greece and the Republic of Cyprus, both belong to the EU. Angela Merkel, with whom Erdogan recently made another video call, must be offended by Varosha’s openness. The German Chancellor tries to mediate between the EU and Turkey.
40,000 residents fled
That should be a lot more difficult after Varosha’s opening. The island of Cyprus has been divided since 1974, when a Turkish invasion followed a Greek coup and the northern part was declared the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. The city of Famagusta in the east is a symbol of the division, the spa of Varosha, which was popular before the division, is a district of Famagusta. Due to the Turkish invasion, around 40,000 residents fled the Greek Cypriot district of Varosha. Turkish troops declared the district a restricted area, since then it has been a ghost town, only Turkish soldiers bathe on the beach from time to time.
In decades-long efforts to find a solution to the Cyprus issue, the return of Varosha to its former Greek Cypriot residents was seen as a confidence-building measure, but never happened. The response of Cypriot President Nikos Anastasiades sounded accordingly: “What Turkey has decided violates all the resolutions of the UN Security Council. It is absolutely unacceptable. “The Greek Foreign Ministry spoke of a” serious violation of UN Security Council resolutions. “Greece, along with Turkey and Great Britain, is the guarantor power of Cyprus. The UN was also “worried”.
