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dpa
New York
The UN Security Council on Friday condemned Turkey’s recently announced plans for the reopening and resettlement of a beach resort area in Northern Cyprus that has remained shuttered since the 1974 conflict that divided the island in two.
The Security Council agreed on a joint statement that demanded “the immediate reversal of this course of action” initiated by Turkey and Northern Cyprus, saying they were in defiance of UN resolutions regarding the status of the island.
The plan was announced on Tuesday by Northern Cyprus President Ersin Tatar and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who hailed it as a “new era” for the disputed area of Varosha.
Varosha, or Maras in Turkish, was sealed off and has remained uninhabited since the war that split Cyprus into a Turkish-controlled north and Greek-controlled south, when Turkish troops invaded following a Greek coup to annex the island.
The abandoned coastal town sits in a military no-go zone and has been used as a bargaining chip in the stand-off between the north and south, with the latter demanding its return to its original inhabitants - the Greek Cypriots.
The Security Council said in that statement that previous agreements required a UN mandate before any resettlement of Varosha.
“The Security Council underscores the need to avoid any further unilateral actions not in accordance with its resolutions and that could raise tensions on the island and harm prospects for a settlement,” the statement said.
The whole of Cyprus became a member of the European Union in 2004, but EU law is only valid in the southern part of the island until a possible reunification.
Only Turkey recognizes Northern Cyprus as a full state.
New York
The UN Security Council on Friday condemned Turkey’s recently announced plans for the reopening and resettlement of a beach resort area in Northern Cyprus that has remained shuttered since the 1974 conflict that divided the island in two.
The Security Council agreed on a joint statement that demanded “the immediate reversal of this course of action” initiated by Turkey and Northern Cyprus, saying they were in defiance of UN resolutions regarding the status of the island.
The plan was announced on Tuesday by Northern Cyprus President Ersin Tatar and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who hailed it as a “new era” for the disputed area of Varosha.
Varosha, or Maras in Turkish, was sealed off and has remained uninhabited since the war that split Cyprus into a Turkish-controlled north and Greek-controlled south, when Turkish troops invaded following a Greek coup to annex the island.
The abandoned coastal town sits in a military no-go zone and has been used as a bargaining chip in the stand-off between the north and south, with the latter demanding its return to its original inhabitants - the Greek Cypriots.
The Security Council said in that statement that previous agreements required a UN mandate before any resettlement of Varosha.
“The Security Council underscores the need to avoid any further unilateral actions not in accordance with its resolutions and that could raise tensions on the island and harm prospects for a settlement,” the statement said.
The whole of Cyprus became a member of the European Union in 2004, but EU law is only valid in the southern part of the island until a possible reunification.
Only Turkey recognizes Northern Cyprus as a full state.
