Colin Stewart, the UN Secretary-General’s Special Representative and Head of UN Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP), who is in New York, is expected to brief the Security Council on January 17, ahead of a resolution renewing the mandate of UNFICYP.
At the same time, Greek Cypriot negotiator for Cyprus, Menelaos Menelaou, also holds a series of consultations at UN headquarters. Deliberations are expected to last one to two weeks and the resolution is scheduled to be adopted by the end of the month.
According to diplomatic sources, discussions revolve around the basis of a Cyprus solution, as well as Turkish violations amid a period of tension, following the release of UN reports on UNFICYP and the UN Secretary General’s good offices mission in Cyprus.
The Cypriot side is holding contacts with the UN Secretariat and the Security Council. In the coming days, the necessary consultations will be held between the member states for the Security Council resolution.
Diplomatic sources tell CNA that the messages so far are encouraging, for things to move in the direction of strengthening chances for reviving the political process.
They also note that we have to see how discussions develop over the next period and how the resolution will be formed in the end.
Taking into account previous UN resolutions, the Security Council recognized the need to provide through the resolutions it adopts a framework within which it expects things to be dealt with in order to keep the prospect alive, they add.
“This understanding continues to exist” diplomatic sources tell CNA. “How exactly this understanding will be expressed, will become obvious after the resolution, the deliberations and the positions that will be submitted by the 15 members” of the Security Council, they note.
The point is to be able to maintain the framework, conveying the basic message that the way forward will be in line with resolutions and the need to be able to create positive prospects and take this effort a step further, overcome stagnation in the political process and reach a point where it will be possible to revitalize it, they conclude.
Cyprus has been divided since 1974, when Turkey invaded and occupied its northern third. Repeated rounds of UN-led peace talks have so far failed to yield results. The latest round of negotiations, in July 2017 at the Swiss resort of Crans-Montana ended inconclusively.
Source: Cyprus News Agency