“We can’t remain inactive in the face of Turkey’s expansionist plans and the two-state solution,” stated Speaker of the House of Representatives Annita Demetriou at the annual memorial service of the first President of the Republic of Cyprus, Archbishop Makarios.
“Forty-five years after the death of Archbishop Makarios, the struggle for vindication and the overthrow of the fait accompli continues against the intransigent, threatening and destabilising attitude of Turkey. Without facing consequences, the Erdogan regime is intensifying its transgression in Cyprus, the Aegean and the Eastern Mediterranean,” the Speaker of the Parliament noted.
“Ankara’s unilateral illegal actions in the enclosed city of Famagusta and Cyprus’ Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) are a dimension of its expansionist policy, which aims to divide the island. Ankara continues to inhumanely deprive refugees of the right to return to their ancestral homes, from the families of the missing persons the opportunity to know what happened to their loved ones and, overall, from the Cypriot people the opportunity to live freely on the island, without the presence of foreign armies and the threat of weapons.”, added Demetriou.
In her speech, the Speaker of the Parliament sent the message that “We do not accept the occupation, the continuation of the unacceptable current situation and we certainly may not stay inactive facing the expansionist Turkish plans and the two-state solution” adding that “no matter how many drilling rigs and gunboats (Turkey) sends to the region, we will not relinquish our sovereign rights, nor will we accept any agreement that would endanger the security of our citizens and the viability of the solution. As the Republic of Cyprus, we are always willing and ready to engage in a new round of meaningful negotiations to achieve a solution based on the resolutions and decisions of the United Nations, as well as the principles and values of the European Union.”
Referring to the importance of national unity, the President of the Parliament stated that “as long as the wounds of the crimes of the Turkish invasion remain open, our debt to our homeland remains on the table.”
“Archbishop Makarios was an emblematic figure, a strong personality, which no one can doubt”, the Speaker of the Parliament noted, speaking about the life and work of the first President of the Republic of Cyprus.
According to Demetriou, Archbishop Makarios’ choices “determined and continue to shape to a great extent the present and the future of our national issue and, by extension, of the Republic of Cyprus itself”.
Cyprus has been divided since 1974 when Turkish troops invaded and occupied the island’s northern third.
Source: Cyprus News Agency