A map for a map

Shall we sneak a look at the Cyprus negotiating table?

At the latest meeting between the two negotiators this week, as well as at the last meeting between the two leaders, the Greek Cypriot side started pressing Turkish Cypriots to open their cards regarding particularly property, territory and guarantee aspects of the process, while parting from the established convergences in the power sharing chapter.

Irrespective of how strongly it might be defended that property, refugees and such issues are “by-products” of the real problem, the Greek Cypriot psychological inability to accept power sharing with Turkish Cypriots, these problems are of course very important and have a bearing effect on the outcome of the entire process. Yet, if the entire process is taken down to property, refugees and territory issues, ignoring the fundamental demands of the Turkish Cypriot side that constitute the heart of the Cyprus problem, then I can say with full confidence that this problem, which has already exhausted 50 years, will not be resolved in the next 50 either.

In the last round of talks, while the Turkish Cypriot side placed a glossy proposal on the table regarding the property issue, suggesting more or less an Annan Plan style resolution, which was centered around finishing the problem as quickly as possible and preventing the property issue from holding any settlement hostage for many decades. That is, the Turkish side, in a way, offered a mixture of “exchange, reinstitution and global compensation.”

The Greek Cypriot side, on the other hand, has been demanding talks be centered on property and territory issues, first stressing without seeing the Turkish proposal on the property issue and the territory map, it would not...