Denktaş: “The European Union does not act with sincerity”

The Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Serdar Denktaş said that the European Union does not act with sincerity to Turkey.

Denktaş said: “They are not sincere to Turkey. They do not reveal their intentions clearly. Turkey’s current problems are obvious, especially about terrorism. Turkey has to take some steps in order to prevent terrorism. Instead of helping Turkey, the European Union tries to get a result by blocking Turkey.”

In his statement to the AA reporter concerning the agenda, Denktaş pointed out that the EU laid down some conditions to Turkey which have not been imposed on any other country.

Indicating that it is not possible to become contrary with President Akıncı about the ongoing negotiations, Denktaş said, “The President who was elected by the public is at the negotiation table and sincerely works for a solution. We can only give support to this”. “Our support to the President and the negotiation process does not affect our decision positively or negatively in the event of a referendum. The responsibility belongs to the President and his team regarding disclosure of the text. When the text is revealed, the responsibility belongs to us and our society. We will consider it when it comes to this stage. I appreciate the sensitivity of the President”.

Pointing out that some statements have been made by Greek Cypriots such as “There would not be a solution unless Turkey waive 17 billion debt”, Serdar Denktaş said, “If Turkey wants she can waive the debt. Turkey has had to help Turkish Cypriots since 1963. Turkey made every kind of investment in this country; roads, electricity, and lots of infrastructure investments. If the conflicts had not started in 1963 because of Greece and Greek Cypriots, the Republic of Cyprus would have had to make all these investments. If they say that the Turkish Cypriots have a debt to Turkey and there would not be a solution because of the debt then I can respond as a Turkish Cypriot that “You have 25 billion Euros debt to the World Bank and IMF, so it can be difficult to reach a solution due to this debt. So the Greek Cypriot side has to pay attention while making declarations.”

Furthermore, mentioning the water issue, Denktaş said that they have been working on the issue and it will be possible to transfer the water to the houses as of next month. Expressing that one of the priorities of the government after the water issue is to connect electricity from Turkey to the TRNC, Denktaş said that by this way, Turkish Cypriots will be able to use cheap and quality electricity. Stating that they need one or two years to realize this project, Denktaş said that the government desires to sign a protocol as soon as possible regarding the issue.

Adding that they made evaluations regarding the Economic and Financial Cooperation Protocol between Turkey and the TRNC and they sent it to Ankara after making some arrangements, Denktaş said that they hope to reach an agreement before establishment of Turkey’s new government.