Cyprus hopes Azeris will reconsider direct flights
Financial Mirror, Cyprus
Aug 2 2005
The Cyprus Government is looking into the spectrum of its relations
with Azerbaijan, hoping that it will review its decision for direct
flights to the occupied areas and will respect international law and
the sovereignty of the Cyprus Government, Cyprus Foreign Ministry
Permanent Secretary Sotos Zackheos has told CN?.
Invited to comment on the illegal landing of an Azerbaijani aircraft
at the airport in Turkish occupied Tymbou, Zackheos noted that Cyprus
President Tassos Papadopoulos and the Ministers of Foreign Affairs and
Communications and Works George Iacovou and Haris Thrasou respectively,
have sent letters of representation to their Azerbaijani counterparts.|
The Cyprus Government has also informed the International Organisation
of Civil Aviation and Eurocontrol on the issue and these organisations
and countries, which are friendly to Cyprus, have made representations
to Baku.
“The Cyprus Government is also looking into Baku’s relations with the
EU and has already stated and decided that the EU’s action plan with
Azerbaijan cannot proceed until this country respects international
law,” he added.
Eurocontrol has also postponed a scheduled meeting of regional
cooperation that was due to take place in Ukraine with the
participation of Azerbaijan, Georgia and Ukraine because of the
illegal flights to the pseudostate.
Cyprus has also expressed its disagreement with Azerbaijan’s intention
to become member of the World Trade Organisation (WTO).
Asked how the issue of the political conflict between Armenia and
Azerbaijan over the Nagorno Karabah region is associated, Zackheos
said “the Cyprus Government is examining the whole spectrum of its
relations with Azerbaijan, hoping that this country will review its
decision on the direct flights and will respect international law
and the sovereignty of the Cyprus Republic.”
“The Cyprus Government wants the development of relations (with
Baku). The Republic of Cyprus depends its policy on the development of
bilateral relations with all countries on the basis of the respect of
international law and the principles of the UN Charter. At the same
time, the principle of mutuality is taken into consideration at the
countries’ interstate relations,” he concluded.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress