Cyprus marks 50 years since the Turkish invasion of 1974 leading to partition
Turkish forces landed on Cyprus on 20 July and captured 3% of the island before the UN Security Council secured a ceasefire. The Turkish area was later widened to 36%.
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00:00This year marks 50 years since the Turkish invasion of Cyprus. It was a period that opened
00:06a deep wound and defined the modern history of Cyprus.
00:10Today, an impasse persists in the peace talks to resolve the issue, despite decades of negotiations
00:17under the UN. However, over the last few months, there has been renewed movement to restart
00:22the talks.
00:24In January, UN Secretary-General António Guterres appointed a personal envoy to Cyprus.
00:30But, while the Greek-Cypriot side still sees bi-zonal, bi-communal federation as the only
00:36viable solution, Turkish-Cypriots want to discuss a two-state solution.
00:42Our goal is, at this stage, to reach as soon as possible the next steps.
00:51It is a fact that we are facing difficulties.
00:55The position of the Turkish side at the moment, which proposes the issues of sovereign equality
01:03and equal international status as prerequisites to accept a re-intervention in a process,
01:11is essentially an unspeakable obstacle, because it deviates from the framework determined
01:17by the UN resolutions.
01:20In addition to the historical compromise of the bi-communal federation, it is beyond
01:27the boundaries of a state that must be secured through the Cypriot solution.
01:33There is no room for deviation from this framework.
01:39But what do the citizens think about the situation 50 years after the invasion?
01:46I have the feeling that every time we discuss the Cypriot solution, we should not only
01:52focus on the solutions or the conditions under which it will be implemented,
01:57but also on whether we have co-operated as a Greek-Cypriot and as a Cypriot-Cypriot
02:01with the idea of ​​a common, co-operative state,
02:04as Cypriot democracy began with its founding in 1960.
02:09I have the feeling that we have not yet co-operated with this idea of ​​co-existence as a society,
02:15and that is why Cyprus remains separate from it.
02:20Nevertheless, there is an important part of society
02:23that supports the solution of bi-zonal, bi-communal federation.
02:27A few days ago, after meeting with all the actors,
02:30the special UN envoy submitted a report to the UN Secretary General.
02:34The content of this report has not yet been made public.