Greek Cypriots should thank Denktas

They have gone crazy. They are also making a fool of themselves.

There are especially a few who were really aggressive. They now say: "What part of this is a victory?" and defend the Turkish Republic of Cyprus (KKTC) in the most baffling ways. "What happened? There was supposed to be a "YES" vote from both sides. Greek Cypriots rejected it," they are saying and link the rejection to mistakes (!) in Turkey’s policies.

Yes. I told you it was unbelievable.

I have nothing against them defending Denktas. However, they should not treat their readers like they are stupid.

There are some facts that cannot be ignored.

If the conservatives had not been this aggressive, I would not have written about it. However, we have to make a note for history.

There is something everyone should know about. If today Greek Cypriots are able to distance Turks from the benefits of European Union membership, made Turkey carry the heavy burden of the Cyprus issue for years and have become members themselves, the main responsibility for this lies with Rauf Denktas.

Greek Cypriots have become full members, because of Denktas’s policies.

Denktas, especially his policies in the last three-years, has shown that he is against a solution. Utilizing this opportunity, Greek Cypriots were able to make the world think that they supported a solution. They reached the Copenhagen summit, by hiding behind Denktas.

Denktas took one of the two important steps in the process that led to today, by not attending the Copenhagen Summit. Foreign Minister Tahsin Ertugrul sent by Denktas was against a solution even more. Had the Turkish side said "YES" at the Copenhagen Summit, everything would have changed and the negotiation process, we went through in the last few months, would have started immediately. And if the negotiations were deadlocked, the EU would have postponed Greek Cypriot membership.

The second important step was on March 10, 2003 during the meeting in The Hague.

U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan asked Denktas and Greek Cypriot leader Tassos Papadopoulos whether they accepted the plan or not.

Denktas immediately said "NO" and left the meeting.

If he had said "YES" and asked for a new negotiation process, instead of rushing his answer, Papadopoulos would have said, "NO."

Denktas’ attitude both saved Papadopoulos and ensured that Greek Cyprus would sign the EU accession treaty alone.

The EU was faced with Denktas, who rejected the plan, and a silent Papadopoulos. That’s why the Greek Cypriot leader was able to sign the accession treaty alone.

What if Denktas had forced Papadopoulos to say "NO" by accepting the plan? Greek Cypriot accession would have been postponed to after an agreement. In short, Denktas gave Greek Cyprus the chance to become EU members with his own hands.

Let’s calmly consider what we can say about these developments.

Is this how a negotiator conducts negotiations?

Is this experience?

No.

Rauf Denktas has no confidence in his people. He is so sure that his people would sell all their properties to Greek Cypriots, given the chance, and leave KKTC, that he believes the only solution is obstructionism and unification with Turkey. Unfortunately he doesn’t suffer from the consequences of his policies, but his people do. Unaware of this truth, "NO" supporting commentators in Turkey voice their hopeless arguments.

Yeah, right.

Athens should concentrate on Turks, not Greek Cypriots
Athens is in trouble.

Its heart beats for Greek Cypriots.

However, it is deeply unhappy about Papadopoulos’s latest maneuver. Papadopoulos ruined Greece’s game plan. The new conservative government in Greece, just like the former PASOK government, did not want to raise the tension in relations with Turkey. What Greek Prime Minister Kostas Karamanlis really wanted was the acceptance of the Annan plan, the isand’s membership to the EU and the end of the problem.

Papadopoulos ruined this plan.

After all that was said and done, Karamanlis cannot come out and ask him why he acted in this way. He may be asking him this question behind closed doors, but he needs to continue to publicly support him.

That’s the real problem.

Greek Cypriots have ensured their security. Greece now has to take care of the Turks.

The reason is simple.

Every negative development in Cyprus will directly affect their relations with Turkey. Neither Athens, nor Ankara wants things to get out of hand.

If a miracle happened and the Cyprus issue is resolved, both capitals would be very happy. However, we are tired of waiting for a miracle. So we have to implement clever policies instead.

Let’s see whether the Karamanlis government can act cleverly.

For Talat, Cyprus comes first
KKTC Prime Minister Mehmet Ali Talat is forcing his beliefs on to the agenda. Ever since he became the prime minister, we are seeing a different Talat. He has become a statesman and he seems like the strongest candidate to become the next president.

Some in Ankara used to worry about Talat’s beliefs. While, these worries have decreased, we cannot say they have ended in their entirety.

The reason for this cautious approach towards Talat is that he doesn’t see everything from Ankara’s perspective. Rauf Denktas’s policy until the latest Annan plan was based on implementing the commands of the Turkish government and the military. Some, who know that Talat would not be so obedient, are worrying right now. Talat’s prestige has increased. They know that the time for Denktas has ended.

Whatever happens, Ankara needs to change its perception of KKTC. It can no longer be treated as a district of Turkey. We cannot see its president as a local governor, and its prime minister as a mayor.

Talat seems like a good person for this transition period.

Where does Russian love for Greek Cypriots come from
All of a sudden, Russia and Greek Cyprus have become inseparable. The U.N. Security Council was supposed to give guarantees on the implementation of the Annan plan in order to ensure communist AKEL to change its vote in the referendum to "YES." A document was produced after much discussion, but the Russians vetoed it. Their grounds for vetoing it was based on "technical reasons," they said. Later, it was revealed that Greek Cypriot Foreign Minister Yakovu personally went to Moscow to ask them to veto the document.

How come Greek Cyprus has become more important than Turkey in Russia’s foreign affairs?

It is something hard to understand.

I didn’t.

Was it a payback for Chechnya? Or was it to ensure the continued sale of weapons to Cyprus?