EU Observer - Opinion
Old friends? Palestine, Cyprus, and Greece- January
26, 2016
·
Greek FM Nikos
Kotzias, who lobbied for Israel at the EU Council last week, with Palestinian
FM Riyad al-Maliki last year (Photo: Υπουργείο Εξωτερικών)
JAFFA, PALESTINE, 26. Jan, 18:1
Built on common experience,
long-term interests and moral principles, Palestine’s relationship with Cyprus
and Greece goes back a long way.
Short-term economic gains should
not be allowed to damage these deep and precious friendships.
·
Israel, Cyprus, and Greece are
looking to exploit Mediterranean Sea gas (Photo: turkstream.info)
Over the last 70 years, the
relationship of Cyprus and Palestine was that of close friendship and political
alliance. Both were former British colonies and both suffered from British
manipulations, leaving behind two divided homelands.
The struggle of the Cypriots to
liberate and unite their land found close allies in the Arab World,
particularly in Egypt. President Nasser of Egypt and archbishop Makarios of
Cyprus stood side by side in the struggle against British occupation.
For the Palestinians, these two
leaders were natural allies in their struggle for freedom and independence.
Egypt, Cyprus and the Palestine Liberation Organisation joined the Non-Aligned
Movement.
I remember my first trip to
Nicosia in 1965. It reminded me of my hometown of Jaffa.
The fragrance of jasmine and
orange blossom, and the colourful flowers, brought back all the memories of the
home I lost when Israel was created in 1948 - the year that I and the majority
of my people became refugees.
As Palestinians, we stood against
the Turkish occupation of Northern Cyprus [from 1974]. I remember, in my former
capacity as foreign minister of Palestine, my instructions were very clear: to
stand by the legitimate government of Cyprus, and to stand against any
recognition of a separatist state in the North of Cyprus, particularly within
the Arab League, and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, where we had some
moral and political influence.
The friendship was mutual. Cyprus recognised the state of Palestine in
1988. It supported our struggle for independence and our pursuit of peace.
Palestine supported Cyprus in its pursuit of independence, territorial
integrity, and unity.
Greek friendship
We have traditionally had an
equally strong relationship with Greece.
Part of our ancestral origin can
be traced back to the Greek island of Crete. We raise the Greek flag on all our
Orthodox churches, to which most of our Christians belong.
We will never forget the welcome
party in Athens, in 1982, after 88 days of Israeli bombardment and siege of
Beirut, killing thousands of Palestinians and Lebanese people.
Prime minister Andreas Papandreou
led the party that met our historic leader, Yasser Arafat, on his arrival.
As foreign minister, I worked
very hard to support Greece in the Arab and Muslim world, both economically and
politically. The close bond shared between Papandreou and Arafat, and between
me and his son George, reflected a long friendship between Palestine and
Greece.
That relationship, like our
relationship with Cyprus, was not limited to a particular political party. It
was a friendship among peoples: Greeks, Cypriots, and Palestinians.
After Greece and Cyprus joined
the EU, they became two of our closest allies in the bloc, supporting our quest
for a peaceful political solution, and standing by us when Israel violated its
commitments, whether by continuing to expropriate land and water, by destroying
the Gaza Strip, or denying us the state we had accepted - on just 22 percent of
our original homeland.
Our Greek and Cypriot allies
stood by the principles and commitments which had brought us together for 70
years.
Oil and gas
Lately, and very regrettably,
these relationships have begun to change.
One understands the importance of
economic and political interests in the formation and shifts of political alliances.
Today, Cyprus, Greece and Israel are linked by certain issues, including
natural gas, oil, geopolitical influence, as well as financial crises.
We understand. But, such
connections are not unique to Greece and Cyprus. Several other countries such
as Russia, China, India and other EU countries have developed important
economic relations with Israel.
Some of them were also historical
allies of the Arab World and of Palestine. At one time, we felt that their
closeness to both Palestine and Israel may be an advantage in supporting the
peace process.
Short-term changes in economic
interests and political positions do not change important facts, such as: Who
is the occupier and who is the occupied in the Holy Land? Or, who, out of
Palestine and Israel, is now being warned, even by its closest allies, that
it’s becoming an apartheid state?
Nor should it change assessments
of the balance of power. Such as, who has extensive military and nuclear
capabilities? Or, whose national income is 40 times that of the other?
Finally, one should not forget
who has remained committed to the peace agreements, and who has violated those
agreements.
Changes in economic interests do
not change international law, or the sanctity of justice and human rights.
China, France, Brazil, and Russia
have common economic and political interests with Israel, but their position on
the rights of the Palestinians, and on the necessity of ending the Israeli
occupation, has not changed.
In fact, as Israel continues to
violate international law, UN resolutions, and signed agreements, these powers
have become more ready to condemn Israeli actions against the Palestinians, and
to apply sanctions against Israel.
Assurances?
We were given assurances by the
leaders of Cyprus and Greece that their closer relationship with Israel would
not change their commitments to Palestine, nor would it adversely affect their
historical relationship with Palestine or the Arab and Muslim world.
The prime minister of Greece and
the president of Cyprus both recently visited Palestine and Israel. Both made
statements in Palestine reaffirming these historical positions.
The explanation was very clear:
Parliament members of all the Greek parties, representing all of the Greek
people, support Palestine, and the right of the Palestinians.
In the light of the above, it is
very difficult to explain some of the recent words and actions of leaders of
these two countries.
On 12 January, Averof Neophytou,
the head of Cyprus’ ruling party, the DICY, and the chairman of the Cypriot
House of Representatives, visited Israel.
He was quoted as saying:
"Cyprus no longer sees Israel as an aggressive country imposing its will
by force on the Palestinians, but rather as a small nation fighting for
survival in the face of much greater odds.”
He told the Israeli newspaper,
The Jerusalem Post, that, over the last decade, his country which had once,
alongside Greece, been among the most critical of Israel in Europe, now had a
“clearer picture.”
“It is a country of 8 million
fighting a struggle for survival and having to face hundreds of millions of
Muslims and Arabs, part of who don’t even recognise the right of the existence
of a Jewish state … So which side is strong, and which side is weak? Which side
is fighting for survival?,” he said.
I was glad to see the Cypriot
opposition party, AKEL, call him out on trying to “distort history and
reality.” But the fact the statement was made, and, so far, not retracted,
disturbs me.
EU foreign policy
What’s even more worrying is the
apparently total change in the position of Greece and Cyprus in terms of voting
and lobbying in the EU Council.
On the 17 January, the Greek
foreign minister almost succeeded in torpedoing the conclusions of the latest
meeting of EU foreign ministers, by insisting on an Israeli version of several
key paragraphs.
Meanwhile, statements attributed
to Greek leaders, announcing their refusal to implement the EU directive on
labeling of settlement products, were shocking. They were later corrected.
Greek statements supporting
Israel’s claim that the whole of Jerusalem is the historical capital of the
state of Israel and the Jewish people, completely ignoring Palestinian rights
in Jerusalem, were even more shocking.
They remain uncorrected.
The Palestinian people expect a
correction and an explanation. We do not want to abandon our friendship with
Greece or Cyprus, nor do we want to see a shift away from the strategic
relationships that link these two neighboring countries to the Arab and Muslim
world.
I am sure the majority of the
Greek and Cypriot people share my feelings about our relationship.
Loyalties
We are loyal to this heritage,
and we do not change our moral commitments and principles due to a temporary
shift in economic interests.
We do not object to Greece or
Cyprus pursuing their mutual economic interests with Israel, but we call on
them to remain committed to their long-term friendship and to our shared
principles.
In the long run, these principles
are the cornerstones upon which peace, stability, security, and economic
prosperity are built, not only in the Eastern Mediterranean, but in the whole
world.
Nabeel Shaath is the Fatah party’s foreign relations
commissioner. He served as Palestinian foreign minister between 1994 and 2005
