Interview: Left party Akel could play crucial role in reunited Cyprus gov't: spokesperson

Left-wing Cypriot party AKEL hopes that an eventual reunification of the eastern Mediterranean island will give the party more political influence, party spokesman Stefanos Stefanou said on Wednesday.

Stefanou told Xinhua in an interview that AKEL has connections with the eastern Mediterranean island's Turkish Cypriot community.

That factor, he explained, will help the communist AKEL party play a crucial role in the government under the federal solution currently being pursued by Greek and Turkish Cypriot communities.

AKEL's ties with the Turkish Cypriots go back to the 1940s, when Greek and Turkish Cypriot workers toiled in underground copper mines and jointly fought tough labor battles under the guidance of trade unions set up by AKEL -- the only organized political power in Cyprus at the time.

Stefanou said that after the crisis that affected the island's economy since 2011, AKEL lost is traditional electoral power of around 30 percent, falling to just 26 percent in this year's parliamentary election.

But AKEL was still the second largest party of Cyprus. "We look forward to regaining our political strength of close to one third of the electorate under a solution that will turn Cyprus into a federal state because of our close ties with the Turkish Cypriot community," Stefanou said.

"A solution will change everything in Cyprus in social and economic terms. AKEL's role in the new state will be instrumental," he added.

The solution is being currently negotiated between Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades, acting in his capacity as leader of the Greek Cypriot community and moderate Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci.

The two leaders said that they expect to move to the next stage of their negotiations early in November after having made progress in four of the chapters discussed.

They are expected to tackle the thorny issue of territorial adjustments before coming to grips with the even tougher issue of security arrangements, which involve moves by Turkey.

"The continuation of partition and the presence of Turkish troops on Cyprus is a constant source of danger for the island," Stefanou said.

"Turkey has been declaring its support for a solution. But now the time has come to give specific answers on the security issues at the negotiating table," said Stefanou.

He added that in a few weeks there will be a clearer picture as to whether a solution will become possible.

"AKEL has its own specifications for a solution. If we judge that the solution is in line with our blueprint, we'll support it no matter which other parties will come out for it," said Stefanou. Enditem