President Nikos Christodoulides met UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in New York on Friday, with both officials confirming a multilateral conference on Cyprus would take place in November to restart stalled negotiations.
The meeting on the sidelines of the 80th UN General Assembly focused on three key areas: humanitarian aid to Gaza, Cyprus’s upcoming EU presidency and the Cyprus issue. Christodoulides expressed realistic expectations for Saturday’s trilateral meeting with Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar.
“I estimate from the discussion I had with the UN Secretary-General that this expanded meeting will take place within November with the aim of restarting negotiations,” Christodoulides stated following the bilateral talks.
November multilateral conference expected to restart Cyprus negotiations
The trilateral meeting scheduled for Saturday will review progress on agreements reached in March and July, with the main objective being preparation for the November conference.
Christodoulides described Saturday’s talks as primarily a “review of the state of affairs” rather than expecting breakthrough developments.
“The realistic goal for Saturday’s trilateral will be a review of the state of affairs and setting the next meeting after the electoral process in the occupied areas after October 19th,” the president explained.
Guterres informed Christodoulides about the arrival of a new Special Representative and head of UNFICYP, whom the Secretary-General described as a close colleague and personal friend who would work towards addressing challenges facing the peacekeeping force and the broader goal of restarting negotiations.
Cyprus humanitarian corridor delivers 25,000 tonnes to Gaza
During their discussions, Guterres expressed gratitude for Cyprus’s role in operating the Amaltheia humanitarian corridor to Gaza. Cyprus delivered an additional 1,000 tonnes of aid on Tuesday, bringing the total to 25,000 tonnes since operations began.
“The appeal from the Secretary-General is to continue and intensify the dispatch of humanitarian aid, especially at this moment when there appear to be problems from other points, from Jordan and Egypt, for uninterrupted provision,” Christodoulides said.
The president also briefed permanent representatives of the UN Security Council’s five permanent members on Cyprus developments during a working dinner in New York, emphasising their essential role in promoting a solution according to Security Council resolutions.
Tatar maintains two-state solution stance before trilateral meeting
Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar arrived in New York maintaining his two-state solution position, telling Turkish news agency Anadolu there was “no alternative policy” to the two-state approach before Saturday’s trilateral talks.
Tatar criticised Christodoulides for attempting to increase his international influence and claimed formal negotiations would never begin without recognition of Turkish Cypriot sovereignty.
He demanded direct flights, direct trade and direct contact as preconditions for any negotiations.
Christodoulides declined to engage with Tatar’s pre-meeting statements, noting potential electoral campaign motivations behind the Turkish Cypriot leader’s positions.
The president emphasised that regardless of Tatar’s remarks, both the UN Secretary-General and British Minister for Europe had previously clarified that any Cyprus solution must remain within the agreed framework established at previous negotiations.
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