Cyprus Talks: Both leaders discuss citizenship

Greek Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades and Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci on Sunday met in continuation of their ongoing intensified reunification talks as both leaders discussed issues related to citizenship.

President Anastasiades who spoke to the media after Sunday meeting said the two leaders discussed citizenship issues such as legal residence, matters of basic freedoms, and the right to vote.

“I should say that in a constructive atmosphere there appears to exist convergences on most issues,” Anastasiades said.

“Some issues remain to be clarified which have been sent for further study to the negotiators. ”

On whether the right of establishment and property acquisition in both constituent states had been decided on without restrictions, or if certain restrictions would will be agreed, Anastasiades said:

“We did not get into this detail. There is an understanding that to obtain, for example, any property… there is a limitation on the extent… housing, property, business premises. But it was always going to be for a transitional period until the Turkish Cypriot constituent state reached the [economic] levels of the Greek Cypriot state.”

Speaking on the number of Turkish settlers that would remain in the north in the event of a settlement, Anastasiades said based on figures at hand, there were currently 117,545 Turkish Cypriots who have registered as citizens of the Cyprus Republic but there was a number of Turkish Cypriots who had not registered adding that this has been calculated to be around 12,500 people, which bring the the total Turkish Cypriots to about 130,000 people. 

Anastasiades said that the maximum number of settlers with possible mixed marriages or are children of mixed marriages, were not more than 90,000.

According to Cyprus Mail, both leaders have fixed citizenship figures at 220,000 for Turkish Cypriots and just over 800,000 for Greek Cypriots under a solution.

Both leaders are expected to meet again on Monday.
Source: CyprusMail