EU Parliament calls for urgent sanctions on Turkey over Cyprus

Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) yesterday voted in favour of a resolution calling on the European Council to impose sanctions against Turkey over its “illegal activities in the Varosha suburb of the city of Famagusta” in Cyprus.

MEPs warned that Turkey’s decision to partially open the town of Varosha, “weakens prospects of a comprehensive solution to the Cyprus problem, exacerbating divisions and entrenching the permanent partition of the island”.

They also called on Turkey to transfer Varosha to its lawful inhabitants under the UN temporary administration in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution 550 (1984) and to refrain from any actions that alter the demographic balance on the island through a “policy of illegal settlement”.

In response, Turkey’s Foreign Ministry condemned the resolution, saying: “We completely reject the non-binding resolution adopted by the MEPs on our country and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.”

“This decision, which is undoubtedly dictated by the Greek Cypriot administration, once again demonstrates how disconnected from reality and prejudiced the EP is on the Cyprus issue,” he continued.

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Earlier this month, the European Union’s foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, criticised Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s visit to northern Cyprus during which he called for a “two-state” solution in the island.

“These [actions] will cause greater distrust and tension in the region and should be urgently reversed,” he said.

In 1974, the Turkish army fenced off Varosha, a beach resort immediately after the invasion of Cyprus.

The Greek Cypriots who fled from Varosha were not allowed to return and with public entry prohibited, Varosha has effectively become a ghost town.

The island of Cyprus was divided in 1974. The island’s Greek Cypriots live predominantly in the south, and Turkish Cypriots in the north since the 1974 war. Several peacemaking efforts have failed and the discovery of offshore resources has complicated the negotiations.