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The Christodoulides government made a bold move to connect Turkey’s future with the European Union to the long-stalled Cyprus settlement talks. But despite Cyprus' efforts, four key EU member states — Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden, and Italy — stood in the way, leaving Nicosia’s plan out in the cold.
According to Kathimerini's Pavlos Xanthoulis, the Cypriot proposal aimed to tweak the wording of the EU’s draft conclusions on Euro-Turkish relations. The original draft simply stated that “Turkey’s own constructive engagement will be instrumental in advancing the various areas of cooperation.” Nicosia wanted to add a crucial clause, linking this cooperation to the resumption and progress of UN-backed Cyprus talks. In short, they wanted to ensure Turkey’s relationship with the EU hinged on making headway with resolving the Cyprus problem.
Germany immediately rejected the proposal, arguing it tipped the balance of the conclusions too much. Sweden and Italy backed Germany’s stance, while the Netherlands pointed out that the proposed change went against agreements made in April, which Cyprus had already signed off on. At that time, Nicosia agreed to promote EU-Turkey relations without making them dependent on Cyprus talks.
This rejection means that Euro-Turkish relations are now moving forward with no strings attached regarding the Cyprus issue. Turkey’s diplomatic and economic ties with the EU are advancing, even though Cyprus remains at a standstill, which poses a challenge for President Christodoulides’ strategy.
A “Face-Saving” Effort
When faced with rejection, Cyprus hinted at using a veto on the broader conclusions — a classic diplomatic warning. But given Cyprus’ history of such threats, this wasn’t taken too seriously by other EU partners.
Realizing it was getting nowhere, Nicosia turned to Germany for a bilateral solution, seeking some form of link between the Cyprus problem and Turkey-EU relations. Germany, however, wouldn’t budge beyond the wording agreed upon in April. In the end, Cyprus had to settle for a watered-down statement: the EU noting its “particular importance” on resuming Cyprus settlement talks, but with no real obligation for Turkey.
The final wording reflects a loose connection at best. It doesn’t make progress on the Cyprus issue a requirement for Turkey’s cooperation with the EU. The two paths — resolving the Cyprus problem and improving Euro-Turkish relations — seem to run parallel, but not intertwined.
Unless something unexpected happens, this version is set to be adopted at the EU General Affairs Council meeting on December 17. For Nicosia, it’s a bitter pill, as the fight to make Turkey’s EU future contingent on solving the Cyprus issue remains an uphill battle.
