Cyprus Asks Germany to Help Resolve the Island’s Divide

Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides asked German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier on Monday to lead the European Union in taking on a greater role to solve Cyprus’s division.

The Republic of Cyprus is an ardent supporter of closer relations between the EU and Ankara [Turkey], which are going through the developments and the resolution of the Cyprus problem. It is in this context that we consider a more active involvement on the part of the EU—a leading role that will not replace the role of the [United Nations].
—Nikos Christodoulides

The Cyprus problem: In 1976, a Greek coup and a Turkish military invasion partitioned the island into a Greek-Cypriot south and Turkey’s self-declared state in the north. Political, ethnic and human rights disputes between the two sides have been an ongoing issue ever since.

Germany’s support: During their meeting, Christodoulides and Steinmeier discussed setting up a UN special envoy to mediate negotiations between Turkey and Cyprus.

“It is high time to work with renewed courage on a solution to the Cyprus question,” Steinmeier said, adding that Turkey’s actions in Cyprus could impact its ability to obtain EU membership.

Steinmeier is the first German president to visit Cyprus.

The Trumpet said: In our recent January Trumpet issue, Trumpet editor in chief Gerald Flurry explained:

[T]he power that really rules Cyprus is Germany! Germany rules the EU and has made sure that it dominates Cyprus. This tiny island nation, after entering the EU and adopting the euro, became dependent on the German economy.

To learn more, read “As You Watch Gaza—Watch Germany.”