The President of the Republic of Cyprus, Nicos Anastasiades expressed his “readiness and determination” to engage in negotiations with the newly elected Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar.
Tatar become president after winning the second round of presidential elections with 51.74% of the votes against rival Mustafa Akıncı, who obtained 48.26%, according to the unofficial count.
In a statement on Monday, Anastasiades said he “fully respects” the outcome of the Turkish-Cypriot elections: “I congratulate Mr. Ersin Tatar and look forward to meeting him as soon as possible. I want to assure both him and my Turkish Cypriot compatriots of my readiness and determination to respond immediately to the stated intention of the Secretary General of the United Nations to take a new initiative, as soon as possible, to resolve the Cyprus issue on the basis of UN resolutions, Security Council resolutions and EU principles and values, of which Cyprus is and will continue to be a member state."
Η ετυμηγορία των συμπατριωτών μας να επιλέξουν ως νέον ηγέτη της Τ/Κ κοινότητας τον κ. Ερσίν Τατάρ είναι απόλυτα σεβαστή. Συγχαίρω τον κ. Ερσίν Τατάρ και προσβλέπω το συντομότερο σε μια συνάντηση γνωριμίας. pic.twitter.com/cvB8sLw9Cn
— Nicos Anastasiades (@AnastasiadesCY) October 19, 2020
Anastasiades also said he “hoped” that Tatar will also “show the same will” to restart talks.
Meanwhile, government spokesman Stelios Petsas stated that Greece hopes that the newly-elected leader of the Turkish-Cypriots, Ersin Tatar, will want to restart negotiations to resolve the Cyprus issue.
“After an election, one must look forward and not back. Therefore, we hope the leader elected buy the Turkish-Cypriots will come to the negotiating table," he said.
