Tatar ‘has destroyed Turkish Cypriots’ international prestige’

Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar has “destroyed the Turkish Cypriots’ international prestige”, his predecessor Mehmet Ali Talat said on Monday.

Speaking to newspaper Yeni Duzen, Talat, who served between 2005 and 2010, said Tatar’s insistence on the “three ds”, direct trade, direct flights, and direct contact, as a prerequisite to re-enter negotiations has negatively impacted Turkish Cypriots.

“Therefore, I do not expect any serious gains to be made so long as this policy continues,” he said.

“Direct trade is a European Union issue. Direct flights are an issue of international law. Whatever direct contact is supposed to mean, those contacts already exist,” he said.

He added that with this in mind, Tatar’s current policy on the Cyprus problem is “unsustainable”, though Talat was eager to point out that the three ds policy is a “step back” and a “softening” from Tatar’s earlier demands that the ‘TRNC’ be recognised before negotiations begin.

“These demands are not easily accepted. I do not know which contacts are being discussed, but if you pursue policies the world can understand, there will be no problem with contact,” he said.

He then turned his attention to the matter of flights, saying, “during my term in office, as the result of a lawsuit we filed in England, both the relevant court and the English High Court ruled that this authority belongs to the state that is recognised. This state is of course the Republic of Cyprus.

“The addressee of the requested ‘three ds’ is actually the Republic of Cyprus. If the Republic of Cyprus allows, steps can be taken on these issues,” he said.

With this in mind, he said, “it is necessary to try to move towards a different picture.”

“At the moment, it seems that the main issue is to satisfy Turkey. If Turkey is satisfied in terms of both its relations with the EU and its relations with the world, then progress can be made. However, this may not be in line with Tatar’s demands but within the framework of negotiations starting in some way,” he said.

He did also offer some criticism for the Greek Cypriot side’s stance in recent years, saying, “one of the most important actors who caused the collapse of the process in Crans Montana was [then-Foreign Minister and current President Nikos] Christodoulides.

“Due to the uncompromising attitude of the Turkish Cypriot side, the Republic of Cyprus appears to be the side which wants to compromise, but if negotiations were to begin, pressure would also be put on the Greek Cypriots.”