Election of New President in Cyprus Offers Real Hope of Speedy Resumption of Talks Between The Two Communities:
The Spokespersons of the European Green Party today said that the election of Demitris Christofias as President of Cyprus in the second round of the presidential elections on Sunday 24th February will do much to re-establish confidence that talks between the two communities on the island can be resumed soon.
EGP Co-Spokesperson Philippe Lamberts said: "Demetris Christofias has declared that a key priority for him is to improve relations between the two communities on the island. We very much hope that he quickly take steps to restart negotiations and move the process on from the standstill of the past 4 years. Our member party, the Cyprus Green Party, supported the candidacy of Demetris Christofias after 78% of party members present at a meeting last week voted to support his candidacy rather than the candidacy of Ioannis Kassoulides."
EGP Co-Spokesperson Ulrike Lunacek continued: "The leaders of both communities should relaunch negotiations under the supervision of the United Nations.The EU must use its influence to break the deadlock between the two communities. We are confident that with the election of a new President, there is now the real possibility of a new beginning for Cyprus and this opportunity must be seized by all parties involved. We urge the new President to engage positively with the EU and we also know that the Cyprus Green Party will be closely scrutinising President Christofias' actions, particularly in the areas of environmental protection and sustainable development."
