Menelaou and Dana to Meet on Friday Ahead of Holguin’s Visit

Nicosia: Negotiator of the Greek Cypriot side, Menelaos Menelaou, and the representative of Turkish Cypriot leader, Tufan Erhrman, Mehmet Dana, will meet on Friday, November 28, ahead of the UNSG’s Personal Envoy Mar­a ngela Holgu­n’s visit to Cyprus in early December, CNA learns. Menelaou and Dana are scheduled to meet at Ledra Palace at 10 local time, in the framework of the preparatory work being carried out in view of Holgu­n’s visit, as the latter is expected to the island on December 4.

According to Cyprus News Agency, on November 20, Cyprus President, Nikos Christodoulides, and the new Turkish Cypriot leader Erhrman agreed during their first meeting to have a joint encounter with Holgu­n during her visit. In statements to the press, Christodoulides mentioned that the joint meeting would take place after Holgu­n’s separate meetings with the two leaders. The UN diplomat is scheduled to meet with Christodoulides on December 6 and with Erhrman on December 5.

Christodoulides also stated that in December, Holgu­n will pay visits to Greece and Turkey, while the EU Special Envoy on Cyprus, Johannes Hahn, will also visit Cyprus. The island has been divided since 1974 following Turkey’s invasion and occupation of its northern third. Numerous UN-led peace talks have not yet achieved a resolution due to ongoing Turkish intransigence. The latest substantive negotiations, held in July 2017 at the Swiss resort of Crans-Montana, concluded without an agreement.

In 2025, the Secretary-General hosted two informal meetings on Cyprus, one in March in Geneva and another in July in New York, alongside a tripartite meeting with the Cyprus leaders in late September at the end of the UN General Assembly High-Level Week. A new informal meeting in a broader format is anticipated. Mar­a ngela Holgu­n, the UN Secretary-General’s Personal Envoy on Cyprus, is tasked with engaging the parties, while former European Commissioner Johannes Hahn, designated by the Commission as Special Envoy for Cyprus, is also expected to contribute to the settlement process in cooperation with Holgu­n.