The former Turkish chief negotiator in the Cyprus peace talks is to give two seminars in London next week.
Kudret Özersay, a university professor and former candidate for president of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, will speak in Turkish at one event and English at the other.
A statement released by the events’ organisers said he will address “the growing speculation surrounding the current talks and the type of settlement they may deliver”.
A press release continued: “Titled ‘Cyprus Talks: pushing for a settlement or pushing like Sisyphus?’, the seminars will consider thorny issues such as property, territory, and security where the two sides have struggled to agree, along with those areas where convergence has been achieved.
“[He] will assess the impact of Cyprus’ EU membership on the established UN parameters for a settlement. He will conclude by considering if, after fifty years of talks, a breakthrough is imminent given the current climate or whether, like the ancient Greek king Sisyphus, the two sides in Cyprus are destined to forever push uphill for a peace deal that never materialises.”
Ersu Ekrem, the acting chairman for the British Turkish Cypriot Association, said: “Outside of the two leaders and current chief negotiators, there is no better qualified man on the planet to explain the Cyprus talks than Kudret Özersay. He’s sat at the table with seven Cypriot leaders and knows intimately both the processes and substance involved in the negotiations.
“Free of an official role, Kudret can give us vital insights and answer the many questions our community has about where the talks are heading and what it could mean for them and their families and the future of the island.”
The venue of the Turkish talk, which will be held at 19:45, 11th September 2015, Bromley Central Library, Large Hall (4th floor), High Street, Bromley, Kent BR1 1EX
-Turkish Talk 19:45, 12th September Friday 2015, Hornsey Vale Community Centre, 60 Mayfield Road, London, N8 9LP Mail: info@btca.co.uk Tel: (07828 548 472)
An academic and politician
Kudret Özersay is a former Turkish Cypriot chief negotiator and special representative of the TRNC President. He is also an academic, analyst, and civil society activist.
Born in 1973 in Alaminos village, Larnaca, he lost his father during the 1974 War in Cyprus and his family moved to Nicosia, where his has lived ever since.
Since 2003, he has been a faculty member of the Department of Political Science and International Relations at the Eastern Mediterranean University in Famagusta. An associate professor, he teaches international law, negotiation and mediation, and world politics.
In 2002, then-Turkish Cypriot president President Rauf Denktaş invited him to join his negotiating team for the Cyprus talks. He then served as a member of negotiating team assembled by Mehmet Ali Talat, Denktaş’s successor, as well as Derviş Eroğlu, who followed Mr Talat’s presidency.
During his 12 years in the negotiations, Kudret Özersay has sat at the negotiating table with three different TRNC presidents, four different Greek Cypriot leaders (Clerides, Papadopoulos, Christofias and Anastaisades) and two different UN Secretaries-General (Kofi Annan and Ban Ki-moon). While serving as the Chief Negotiator, he represented the Turkish Cypriot side in major capitals such as London, Athens, Moscow, New York, Washington DC, Brussels, Paris and Berlin.
He ran for Turkish Cypriot president in the election held earlier this year, losing in the first round but with a stronger-than-expected 21.3% of the vote.
