UN Secretary-General António Guterres has been working towards a new informal multilateral meeting on the Cyprus issue since March, well before Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhürman announced he expected a UN initiative in July, sources familiar with the behind-the-scenes told Phileleftheros.
The initiative took shape after Guterres met Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in Ankara and President Nikos Christodoulides in Brussels.
People with knowledge of the matter told Phileleftheros that Erhürman’s July announcement likely reflected his unawareness of Guterres’s existing intentions.
The same sources did not rule out that Erhürman’s statement — made after his meeting with UN Under-Secretary-General Rosemary DiCarlo — was also a move to signal that he, too, is part of the negotiating equation.
What is widely accepted, the sources said, is that Guterres began moving only after consulting Turkish leadership.
Lacroix visits Pyla and Presidential Palace
The Guterres initiative also featured in talks between Christodoulides and UN Deputy Secretary-General Jean-Pierre Lacroix, who visited the Presidential Palace after touring Pyla in the buffer zone earlier in the day to assess the situation on the ground.
During the meeting, Christodoulides underlined UNFICYP’s “very important role, particularly during an increased period of violations by the Turkish occupation forces,” and expressed gratitude for “the political commitment of the UN Secretary-General,” saying Cyprus supports his new initiative.
He also stressed that conditions on the ground remain a concern for Nicosia, adding that “we need a favourable environment for the resumption of negotiations.”
Lacroix assured him that “the Secretary-General is very committed to the Cyprus issue, there is no doubt about it.”
He said UNFICYP’s role is to do whatever it can so that calm prevails in the buffer zone, stressing that “the peacekeeping mission is at the service of the political process.”
Lacroix added that UNFICYP is working “tirelessly” for de-escalation and that “the situation is heading towards de-escalation.”
“The presence of a neutral and impartial mission in the buffer zone is truly important,” Lacroix said, as it “maintains the conditions for political talks to move forward.”
Following a separate meeting with Erhürman in the occupied north, Lacroix described the encounter as “very productive” and said regular interaction with the Turkish Cypriot side is crucial for UNFICYP to fulfil its mission.
‘Ready even tomorrow’
Government Spokesman Konstantinos Letymbiotis said Christodoulides had acknowledged UNFICYP’s “immediate response and effective management” of the Pyla situation.
He added that the President conveyed to Lacroix Guterres’s commitment — which Christodoulides had discussed with the Secretary-General privately in Brussels — to achieve substantive progress before the end of his term.
Asked about Erhürman’s announcement, Letymbiotis noted that Cyprus had already made the initiative public immediately after the Christodoulides–Guterres Brussels meeting.
“We are ready even tomorrow to participate in an enlarged conference, to resume negotiations from the point where they were interrupted, always in accordance with Security Council resolutions,” he said.
On DiCarlo’s meeting with Erhürman, Letymbiotis said Nicosia had lodged “strong representations” both in Cyprus and in New York, and that “that unfortunate moment has been distanced from by the Secretary-General himself through his spokesman.”
Erhürman responds to criticism
In a new social media post, Erhürman responded to what he described as “praise, suggestions and criticism” over exchanges at the Antalya diplomatic forum.
He said his role is to assess substance rather than style, and promised a detailed evaluation of the discussions.
His post came amid criticism, including from the newspaper Avrupa, that he had failed to comment on the Turkish President’s references to two states in Cyprus. “Patience, composure, seriousness and determination… We continue with even greater speed. Together,” Erhürman wrote.
