Cyprus
plans to join NATO, the strategy of gradual rapprochement of the
Republic of Cyprus with the alliance was the focus of the meeting of the
island state's President Nikos Christodoulides with US President Joe
Biden in late October, Greek newspaper Kathimerini reported.
Cyprus
was one of the founding members of the Non-Aligned Movement, but in
2004, in connection with its accession to the European Union, it left
it.
Christodoulides
visited Washington on October 30. This was the first official visit of
the President of Cyprus to the American capital since 1996.
Christodoulides,
elected president in February 2022, fully supported anti-Russian
sanctions. He advocates strengthening the island's ties with the United
States.
At the same time, the Cypriot authorities previously stated that
there were serious obstacles to joining NATO, since Turkiye would
object to it, and Cyprus did not meet the conditions for NATO membership.
Nicosia
has developed a plan, the ultimate goal of which will be joining NATO,
realizing what serious obstacles it will inevitably encounter, the
publication said.
This is a detailed, well-thought-out, long-term plan,
consisting of many interdependent stages, which has already been adopted
by Washington, it said, adding that White House National Security
Advisor Jake Sullivan called it a "win-win option."
The
starting point of the plan is the positive development of the Cyprus
settlement and progress in relations between Cyprus and Turkiye.
According
to the newspaper, after Washington, Christodoulides also discussed his
plan with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte on the sidelines of the
European Political Community summit in Bucharest.
Cyprus
has been de facto divided between the Greek and Turkish communities
since 1974, following an armed invasion by Turkiye provoked by a coup in
Cyprus and an attempt to annex the island to Greece.
Thirty-seven
percent of the island's territory, where the Turkish Republic of
Northern Cyprus (TRNC) was proclaimed in 1983, was occupied. Only
Turkiye has recognized the TRNC.
UN-mediated talks between the Greek and
Turkish communities on the reunification of Cyprus were interrupted
after the failure of another round held in the Swiss city of
Crans-Montana in 2017. Attempts are currently being made to resume
negotiations.
Greek
Cypriots believe that the Cyprus problem can only be resolved on the
basis of UN decisions within the framework of a bi-zonal, bi-communal
federation. Turkish Cypriots advocated a confederation of Cyprus.
The
leader of the Turkish community, Ersin Tatar, stated that he would not
return to the negotiating table until the equal sovereignty and
international status of Turkish Cypriots was recognized.
