The conflict that has started in Ukraine following the Russian aggression with the blatant violation of international law and the UN charter should make us realise that the world is not a safe place and the risk of sustaining a frozen conflict is too high.
Turkish Cypriot peace activist Dr Okan Dağlı has been rejected entry to Turkey at the airport in İzmir as his name is among the list of Turkish Cypriots who are now regarded as a threat to the national security by the current regime in Turkey.
We applaud the decision of the Republic of Cyprus to cover the medical costs of little Asya who has been suffering from SMA Type 1, a rare medical condition that requires an expensive treatment process.
Since the collapse of the talks in Crans Montana, the deteriorating status quo in Cyprus is not only deepening the divide but also dragging us into the uncharted waters of uncertainty and instability.
As it became clear from the latest statements by Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on the 19th and 20th of July during his visit in Cyprus, Cyprus and the EU are still sliding blindly towards a hard border with Turkey in the centre of Nicosia. It is sadly clear that no one in the international community has a plan on how to address this highly unstable so-called “status quo”.
We the undersigned welcome the announcement by the UN on Wednesday that all crossing points will be reopened on Friday 4 June, more than 15 months after they were unilaterally closed. The closure split families, friends and loved ones and risked cementing the division of our country permanently.
