Think tank report: KKTC cannot be blamed for Cyprus division
A think tank known for its studies on the European Union asked Finland, which holds the current term presidency of the EU, to help lift sanctions imposed on the Turkish Cypriots.
?Turkey is making a reasonable request to the EU to remove the present embargo on traffic through northern Cypriot sea harbors and airports,? the Brussels-based Center for European Policy Studies (CEPS) said in a report drafted to be presented to Finland.
Referring to remarks by EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn, who warned Turkey's negotiations are heading for a ?train wreck? unless Turkey fulfills its EU obligations, the report said: ?These are in themselves reasonable conditions to put to the candidate state. However, Turkey is also making a reasonable request? by asking the 25-nation bloc to ease the isolation of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (KKTC).
Turkey is under pressure from the EU to open its ports and airports to Greek Cypriot traffic under a customs union protocol but Ankara refuses to do so unless sanctions imposed on the KKTC are lifted. The European Commission proposed removing the embargo on the KKTC after a U.N. reunification plan was overwhelmingly rejected by the Greek Cypriots. The majority of Turkish Cypriots voted for the peace plan.
?The citizens of northern Cyprus are (or can be) passport-holding citizens of the Republic of Cyprus and therefore also citizens of the EU. As a result the EU has its obligations to the citizens of northern Cyprus, first of all their right to enjoy all freedoms that are at the heart of the EU's legal order,? the report said.
?Northern Cyprus cannot be blamed for the continued division of the island,? it stressed.
Stating that the Turkish Cypriots were being punished despite their approval of the U.N. plan, the report suggested alternatives including renegotiating an amended version of the U.N. plan and the EU opening up of bilateral channels of assistance to the KKTC.
Turkish Daily news
?Turkey is making a reasonable request to the EU to remove the present embargo on traffic through northern Cypriot sea harbors and airports,? the Brussels-based Center for European Policy Studies (CEPS) said in a report drafted to be presented to Finland.
Referring to remarks by EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn, who warned Turkey's negotiations are heading for a ?train wreck? unless Turkey fulfills its EU obligations, the report said: ?These are in themselves reasonable conditions to put to the candidate state. However, Turkey is also making a reasonable request? by asking the 25-nation bloc to ease the isolation of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (KKTC).
Turkey is under pressure from the EU to open its ports and airports to Greek Cypriot traffic under a customs union protocol but Ankara refuses to do so unless sanctions imposed on the KKTC are lifted. The European Commission proposed removing the embargo on the KKTC after a U.N. reunification plan was overwhelmingly rejected by the Greek Cypriots. The majority of Turkish Cypriots voted for the peace plan.
?The citizens of northern Cyprus are (or can be) passport-holding citizens of the Republic of Cyprus and therefore also citizens of the EU. As a result the EU has its obligations to the citizens of northern Cyprus, first of all their right to enjoy all freedoms that are at the heart of the EU's legal order,? the report said.
?Northern Cyprus cannot be blamed for the continued division of the island,? it stressed.
Stating that the Turkish Cypriots were being punished despite their approval of the U.N. plan, the report suggested alternatives including renegotiating an amended version of the U.N. plan and the EU opening up of bilateral channels of assistance to the KKTC.
Turkish Daily news
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