UNSC condemns plan to reopen Northern Cyprus resort Varosha

UN Security Council calls for ‘immediate reversal’ of decision by Turkey and Turkish Cypriots to reopen part of Varohsa.

The UN Security Council has condemned the decision by Turkey and Turkish Cypriots to reopen a residential section of an abandoned suburb and called for “the immediate reversal” of this unilateral action, warning that it could raise tensions on the divided Mediterranean island. A presidential statement approved by all 15 council members at an open meeting on Friday reiterated that any attempt to settle any part of the Varosha suburb “by people other than its inhabitants is inadmissible”. “The Security Council calls for the immediate reversal of this course of action and the reversal of all steps taken on Varosha since October 2020,” the 15-member body said in a statement on Friday.