The joint meeting taking place at 10am today between UN Secretary-General António Guterres, President Christodoulides and Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhürman will be decisive for the next steps in the Cyprus peace process.
The trilateral meeting began shortly after 10am in the UN-protected area near Nicosia airport. Alongside Guterres and the two leaders, the meeting is also being attended by the two sides’ negotiators, Mehmet Dana and Menelaos Menelaou, as well as Elizabeth Spehar’s successor María Ángela Holguín, Ms Di Carlo, and an adviser to the UN Secretary-General.
Guterres is expected to hold a press conference immediately after the meeting concludes, at around 11:45.
Guterres attended a dinner with the two leaders last night at Nicosia airport. Afterwards, Christodoulides said he was satisfied with the discussion and that the Secretary-General “is so very politically committed to this effort.”
Returning to the Presidential Palace, Christodoulides said the discussion had covered all the issues, including substance, methodology, convergences, the expanded conference and confidence-building measures, and that talks would continue this morning, with hopes of specific announcements.
Speaking to journalists this morning as he left the Presidential Palace to head to the UN’s Good Offices in Nicosia for the trilateral meeting, Christodoulides said there was constant contact with Turkey, noting that María Ángela Holguín had been involved and that Guterres had spoken by phone with Turkey on Sunday evening. Asked whether Guterres would hold further phone contacts, Christodoulides said he did not know the Secretary-General’s phone schedule, but that Turkey was certainly part of the effort.
Asked about the upcoming visit of EU Special Envoy for the Cyprus Problem Raffaele Fitto, Christodoulides confirmed Fitto arrives in Cyprus on Thursday evening and that he would meet him on Friday morning.
Asked what today’s goal was, Christodoulides said the aim was to create the conditions for announcements on resuming talks from the point where they were interrupted at Crans-Montana. He said this was being pursued step by step, that positive developments were expected, and that they would wait to see what happens today.
Guterres arrived at the UN offices near Nicosia airport shortly before the meeting, with dozens of journalists gathered at the scene.
The meeting is taking place in the UN-protected area near the airport, and Guterres is expected to hold a press conference immediately afterwards, where announcements on next steps are expected.
Both President Nikos Christodoulides and Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhürman have arrived for the meeting.
