Nicosia has welcomed the United Nations Security Council’s adoption of Resolution 2646 on Cyprus, particularly the text’s references to the state of play in Turkish-held Varosha.
That is, the July 20, 2021 announcement by Turkish and Turkish Cypriot leaders on the further reopening of a part of the fenced-off area of Varosha.
UN resolutions demand that the status quo remains unchanged and that only its lawful Greek Cypriot inhabitants who are displaced since the 1974 Turkish invasion in Cyprus should reside there. Cyprus is divided since then.
Resolution 2646 on Thursday expressed deep regret regarding unilateral actions that run contrary to its previous resolutions and statements on Varosha and calls for the immediate reversal of this course of action.
The resolution extends the mandate of the peacekeeping force in Cyprus (UNFICYP) by another six months up to January 31 of 2023.
The Foreign Ministry in Nicosia also welcomed the resolution’s call for the resumption of the now-stalled UN-brokered talks aiming to reunite the divided island under a bi-zonal, bi-communal federal system.
The Turkish side now demands an unacceptable two-state solution in Cyprus.
Moreover, the resolution’s opinion that the current status quo in Cyprus is not viable was also welcomed by Nicosia.
