Turkish Cypriot President Tufan Erhürman has said the European Union cannot participate as a party in any future Cyprus negotiations but could support confidence-building measures on the island.
Erhürman made the remarks after meeting European Commission Executive Vice-President Raffaele Fitto, the Commission’s special representative for Cyprus, on July 31.
“We explained that recent unilateral and partisan attitudes, actions and decisions by EU institutions, particularly the European Parliament, had further undermined confidence in the EU,” Erhürman said in a written statement.
He said the Turkish Cypriot community needed confidence-building measures not only with the Greek Cypriot leadership but also with the EU.
Erhürman said he told Fitto that the bloc could not take part in future negotiations as a party. However, the EU could play a positive role in confidence-building measures if it wished to contribute to a fair and lasting settlement on the island, he added.
