Turkey has rejected an order to pay Cyprus 90m euros in compensation for its invasion of Cyprus in 1974, said the Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu.
The European Court of Human Rights ordered Turkey to pay Cyprus damages for losses endured during the invasion and subsequent partition of the island.
Constantinos Procopiou, president of the national organisation PASEKA and its Victorian chapter SEKA (Justice for Cyprus Coordinating Committee) said that he becomes “disappointed” when he hears this, “especially with the big powers that haven’t done anything to implement these decisions”.
Yet he believes that it was a “very important decision” and he is very satisfied, even more so because he comes from the area of the Karpa Peninsula, an enclave within northern Cyprus.
Turkey has been ordered to pay 60m euros to the Greek-Cypriot residents of the Karpas peninsula, and 30m euros for the suffering endured by relatives of the nearly 1,500 people who had gone missing during the invasion.
“It’s important the European court of Human Rights has recognised the injustice,” Mr Procopiou tells Neos Kosmos.
Following the ruling, Foreign Minister Davutoglu told media Turkey did not “consider the decision to be binding because of the grounds it is based on, its method and the fact that it takes into consideration a country that Turkey does not recognise.
“We don’t consider it necessary to make this payment.”
Leaders from both the Greek and Turkish Cypriot sides are engaged in a new round of reconciliation talks in a bid to reunite the island.