Interior Minister stresses President's diplomatic pursuit for reunification

Minister of the Interior, Constantinos Ioannou, who, on Saturday, attended events that took place in Serres and Vergina in Greece to condemn the coup and the Turkish invasion of Cyprus in July 1974, stressed the strong political will of the President of the Republic of Cyprus, Nikos Christodoulides to continue efforts, by diplomatic means, by promoting concrete and targeted proposals that will lead the two sides to the table of negotiations for a Cyprus settlement.

According to a press release issued by the Ministry of the Interior, Ioannou said that 50 years after the tragic events of July 1974, the struggle for the reunification of Cyprus must continue.

At the same time, he referred to the dramatic consequences that the Cypriot people are still experiencing as a result of the coup d'état, the Turkish invasion and the ongoing occupation.

"The violation of fundamental human rights and freedoms, the thousands of refugees and people killed, the humanitarian aspect of the missing persons issue, do not allow us to give up the struggle for a comprehensive solution to the Cyprus problem and the reunification of our country", he noted.

"Despite the intransigence and the provocative claims of Turkey and the Turkish Cypriot side for a two-state solution", Minister Ioannou said, "the Greek Cypriot side remains committed to the agreed framework for a solution, as set out in the relevant UN Security Council Resolutions".

He also underlined that the Cypriot government "has repeatedly demonstrated through its actions its readiness and willingness to cooperate, with the aim of achieving a comprehensive, just and viable settlement of the Cyprus problem, on the basis of the principles and values of the European Union and international law".

Cyprus has been divided since 1974 when Turkey invaded and occupied its northern third. Repeated rounds of UN-led peace talks have so far failed to yield results. The latest round of negotiations, in July 2017 at the Swiss resort of Crans-Montana ended inconclusively. UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres appointed María Ángela Holguín Cuéllar of Columbia as his personal envoy for Cyprus, to assume a Good Offices role on his behalf and search for common ground on the way forward in the Cyprus issue.