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Cyprus negotiation talks

Emergency Resolution adopted at the EPP Congress, St. Julian’s (Malta), 29 - 30 March 2017
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The EPP reiterates its support to the process for a comprehensive and viable settlement of the Cyprus problem, in accordance with relevant UN Security Council resolutions and fully in line with EU law, values and principles. In this respect, the EPP, underlining that the 42 year division and military occupation imposed by Turkey on the Republic of Cyprus must cease and expresses its deep regret for the current standstill in the negotiations. As such, it calls on Turkey and the Turkish Cypriot leader to resume the negotiating process in order to maintain the momentum, build on the progress achieved these past twenty-two months, and continue work on all remaining issues, including on the key chapters of security and guarantees.   As the Republic of Cyprus is and will remain a member of the European Union after the comprehensive settlement, the EPP is of the strong opinion that Cyprus’s EU membership constitutes the best guarantee for the security and stability of a reunified Cyprus. To this end, the EPP calls on Turkey to facilitate a climate conducive for free negotiations, and to contribute concretely to the ongoing efforts for a settlement, including by withdrawing Turkish forces.   The EPP reiterates Cyprus’s importance as a European pillar of stability in the region and in bolstering the EU’s energy security. In this context, the EPP welcomes the recent granting of licenses for three exploration blocks in Cyprus’s exclusive economic zone in the context of the 3rd licensing round. The EPP stresses all the sovereign rights of EU Member States, which include, inter alia, the right to enter into bilateral agreements and to explore and exploit natural resources in accordance with the EU acquis and international law, including the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea and also stresses the need to respect the sovereignty of Member States over their territorial sea and airspace.


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