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Cyprus News Agency: News in English, 06-11-16Cyprus News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: The Cyprus News Agency at <http://www.cyna.org.cy>CONTENTS
[01] SPOKESMAN TALATTurkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat`s address during yesterday`s provocative celebrations for the unilateral declaration of the puppeô regime in the Turkish-occupied areas indicates clearly that there are slim prospects for the Finnish EU presidency`s initiative to avert a crisis between the EU -Turkey relations to succeed, Cyprus Government Spokesman said.Replying to questions, Pashiardis said that no one can speak of a stalemate in the Finnish efforts yet, as Finnish officials continue efforts to promote their proposals in view of the December EU Summit. ``It is better that we all work, both us and Turkey, if it desires to do so, for the effort`s success,`` he added. Pashiardis said that in case the Finnish efforts fail, the government would ``gladly accept`` the responsibility for its insistence that the fenced-off city of Varosha should be returned to its legal inhabitants. Invited to comment on the meetings of American officials in Brussels for Turkey`s EU bid, Pashiardis said that the Americans desire for a smooth and uninterrupted Turkish EU course is well-known. ``Our side also desires a smooth Turkish EU bid but that is up to Turkey itself and not us. It is Turkey`s responsibility to fully comply with the obligations and commitments it assumed towards the EU and the Republic of Cyprus to secure that its EU course will be smooth and uninterrupted,`` the Spokesman added. [02] EUROCONTROL ILLEGAL AIRPORTThe existence of the illegally operating airport in Turkish-occupied Cyprus creates problems in air safety, notes Eurocontrol, calling for an international meeting to take place in order to end practices applied by Turkey and the illegal airport authorities.In statements to CNA, on the sidelines of an International Seminar on air safety, Eurocontrol Deputy Director of ATM Strategies, Lex Hendriks, stressed that the airline industry and the pilots express concern over the existence of the illegal airport (Ercan), which confuses pilots and threatens air safety. I am a pilot myself and very often I fly through this region. The airline industry and the pilots are very concerned about the inadequate interfaces between Cyprus and its northern neighbour Turkey, because of the introduction of an ATC service (in occupied Cyprus) that is not recognized by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), he said. [03] MUNICIPAL ELECTIONS CANDIDACIESCandidacies for the 33 municipalities on the island in the December 17 municipal elections were submitted Thursday.From these 33 Municipalities, nine are under occupation, since 1974 when Turkish troops invaded the island. According to Chief Returning Officer Demetris Demetriou a total of 550,000 Cypriots will vote in December`s elections. [04] CNA XINHUA COOPERATIONThe Cyprus News Agency and the Chinese News Agency Xinhua have expressed their wish to further develop their close cooperation, saying that increased cooperation will help better understanding between the two sides.This was reiterated at a meeting, at CNA offices, between the leadership of the two agencies, as part of a visit to Cyprus of a Xinhua delegation led by its President Tian Congming. The two delegations talked about the work carried out by the agencies, discussed the existing cooperation agreement between them and ways to strengthen it in the future. Cyprus News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article |