The Cyprus parliament condemned the new Turkish provocations in the fenced-off town of Varosha. House president Annita Demetriou will brief her EU counterparts on the new developments, a press release issued on Friday says.
The regime in the Turkish-occupied areas recently carried out new works, aiming at opening another part of the beachfront in the fenced-off area of Varosha.
The parliament described this new development as a totally unacceptable provocation and an act of shameful disregard for international law, in violation of all relevant UN resolutions.
The parliament points out that it will carry on the struggle in the international arena and via parliamentary diplomacy for the reunification of Cyprus and the return of Famagusta to its lawful residents.
Cyprus has been divided since 1974, when Turkish troops invaded and occupied 37% of its territory. Repeated rounds of UN-led peace talks have so far failed to yield results. The latest round of negotiations, in July 2017 at the Swiss resort of Crans-Montana ended inconclusively.
UN Security Council resolution 550 (1984) considers any attempts to settle any part of Varosha by people other than its inhabitants as inadmissible and calls for the transfer of this area to the administration of the UN. Resolution 789 (1992) also urges that with a view to the implementation of resolution 550 (1984), the area at present under the control of the United Nations Peace-keeping Force in Cyprus be extended to include Varosha.
Turkish Cypriot leader, Ersin Tatar, announced in July 2021 a partial lifting of the military status in Varosha. On October 8, 2020, the Turkish side opened part of the fenced area of Varosha, following an announcement made in Ankara on October 6. Both the UN Secretary-General and the EU expressed concern, while the UN Security Council called for the reversal of this course of action. In his latest report to the Security Council, UN Secretary-General Guterres underlines the importance of adhering fully to UN resolutions, underscoring that the position of the United Nations on this matter “remains unchanged.”
Source: Cyprus News Agency