Foreign Minister Kotzias’ statements following his meeting with the President of the House of Representatives of the Republic of Cyprus, Yiannakis Omirou (Nicosia, 27 October 2015)

N. KOTZIAS: Thank you, Mr. President. I want to thank the President, Mr. Yiannakis Omirou, for the invitation he extended to me and for the discussion we had in the temple of Democracy of the Republic of Cyprus, which we hope will extend its embrace to the whole of the Cypriot people, having released northern Cyprus from occupation and Cyprus as a whole from the anachronistic system of guarantees. Greece stands by and supports the efforts of the Republic of Cyprus to resolve the Cyprus issue, and, for itself, has undertaken active initiatives in fulfilment of its role and to contribute to the withdrawal of the occupation troops from the island at the soonest possible time.

The Cyprus issue needs to be resolved correctly, based on international law and European law, based on human rights and the rights of all Cypriot citizens, because the world needs a stable Cyprus and a stable Greece in a time of destabilization in both the Middle East and North Africa. We also talked about the refugee issues, and we share thoughts with the President, whom I would once again like to thank for our conversation and for his hospitality here at the temple of Democracy.

JOURNALIST: When do you see Greece delimiting the EEZ?

N. KOTZIAS: Which exclusive economic zone? There are many EEZs, with Cyprus, with Egypt. It is the subject of good cooperation in the trilateral, which one mustn’t jump ahead of as a diplomat. You know, the Foreign Minister of a state isn’t a diplomat, in the formal sense of the term, but he is the head of diplomacy, and diplomacy has to do a lot without saying much.

JOURNALIST: Is it looking good?

N. KOTZIAS: We’re taking care of everything.

JOURNALIST: How do you respond to those who disagree with the bizonal, bicommunal federation?

N. KOTZIAS: I don’t respond. These are matters of the domestic consolidation of the Republic of Cyprus. The London and Zurich agreements gave me, as Greece, an anachronistic role that needs to be abolished; the role of guarantor power. At the same time, I must contribute to the withdrawal of the occupation troops at the soonest possible time and take care that the rule of law and European law are implemented throughout the territory of the EU. All of the other issues are matters of Cyprus’s domestic legal order, matters for the Republic of Cyprus, the House of Representatives and the political parties of Cyprus.

JOURNALIST: Can I assume that you hold the same stance regarding the settlers?

N. KOTZIAS: We aren’t the ones negotiating that. It is being negotiated by the Republic of Cyprus. What we are negotiating, in quotation marks, is an end to the outdated guarantees system. We fully respect the Republic of Cyprus, and we do not want to leave major powers, or countries like Greece and Turkey, with the right to intervene in the internal affairs of the Republic of Cyprus. And we would be very pleased if Ankara got this message.