The Foreign Office is on the doorstep of launching intensive interventions in the Cyprus settlement process, says Phileleftheros senior political editor Costas Venizelos, as the UN begins a new quest for a return of the two sides to the talks, with the Secretary General’s latest envoy Maria Anhel Olgin Cuellar, of Colombian success, sounding out the two sides and taking stock of what guarantor powers have told her thus far.
According to well informed sources, London is seeking to sideline everyone else and rush to determine the framework in which the UN initiative will unfold, voluntarily offering ‘technical expertise’ and ‘ideas’. It is believed that recent remarks by the British High Commissioner in Nicosia, Irfan Siddique as to the nature and shape of a future solution, particularly that the bizonal bicommunal federation is a flexible arrangement, a position not going down well with the Cyprus government, were by all accounts a precursor of intentions and used to record reactions.
When the British High Commissioner was called to the foreign ministry for representations following the remarks, which were considered unacceptable by Nicosia, the same sources say that Mr.Siddique claimed his statements should not be really irritating Nicosia and defended his views to the fullest. He further brought Ms.Cuellar to the fore, saying that his views were also hers, a claim that should not be left dangling-if one would venture to use this expression freely-and be looked into accordingly.
The British government, according to senior political correspondent Venizelos, has placed two experienced diplomats at the forefront of its new Cyprus issue intervention, in light of developments, namely Ajay Sharma-who served as a British Foreign Office envoy on the Cyprus issue, with a stint in Ankara-and Jonathan Allen, who served both in Cyprus, as well as his country’s permament UN representation in New York. They are reported to be the ones who will be heavily weighing in when it comes to pushing British policy over the next steps in the Cyprus issue process.
It is evident, say the Philenews sources, that what the Foreign Office has in mind, is to step all over Ms.Cuellar’s initiative, essentially taking the lead in both content and process, setting the agenda of discussions and consultations.
Taking closely apart what the British High Commissioner has said, London’s attention seems to be focusing on the issue of sovereignty, considered by the British side as key and firmly believed that if overcome, then the rest of the process will be plain sailing. At least that’s what British officials seem to be saying in sounding out backstage contacts. Their belief, according to Phileleftheros sources, is that Greek Cypriots should recognise the ‘inherent rights’ of Turkish Cypriots, referring back to the issues of sovereignty as set by the ‘co-founders’ of the Republic of Cyprus.
‘Everyone should take a step back when in comes to sovereignty’, seems to be London’s current position. As part of their planning, they have dusted down the Anastasiades-Eroglu agreement of February 2014, which refers to a single sovereignty, but ‘equally evolving from Greek and Turkish-Cypriots’. This planning also involves the Turkish Cypriot future, should another initiative fail, along the lines of Scotland or Ireland.
The Foreign Office, as noted, enjoys ‘constructive ambiguity’, it is therefore arguing the the bizonal model is a flexible framework.
Meanwhile, reliable sources tell Phileleftheros that the new Cyprus envoy will not be based out of Cyprus, but London, so she could be as close as possible to the region, facilitating her frequent comings and goings to and from countries involved in the process. She also chose London as one of her children is studying there and therefore it becomes more practical, along with the fact that she won’t avoid transatlantic travel and be readily available.
The Colombian official will be in London this week and so far she has said nothing about the way she will be moving forward. For the time being, she is at the listening phase, while also posing a series of questions both on the past as well as future possibilities.
Nicosia will continue its own efforts, always in conjuction with pressure on the Euroturkish relations front, even if there are no current indications that anything positive will come of them, due to the intransigence of the Turkish side. According to the Venizelos sources, the government has looked into possible scenarios following a new failure, taking into account both Turkish positions as well as third party intentions.
