Nicosia: The President of the Republic, Nicos Christodoulides, and Turkish Cypriot leader, Tufan Erhurman, are set to meet today under the auspices of the United Nations. The meeting is scheduled for 11:00 a.m. at the Chief of Mission's Residence within the UN Protected Area, hosted by the UN Secretary-General's Special Representative in Cyprus, Khassim Diagne.
According to Cyprus News Agency, President Christodoulides has voiced his disagreement with the UN Secretary-General's Special Envoy on Cyprus, Maria Holguin, regarding her assessment that the substantive resumption of talks might be delayed until after June. In an interview with the Greek newspaper "TA NEA," President Christodoulides emphasized that neither the Presidency of the EU Council nor domestic electoral procedures should hinder the restarting of negotiations.
President Christodoulides reiterated a five-point proposal he had previously submitted, which includes reaffirming the agreed basis for a solution, recording convergences up to Crans-Montana, and convening an Expanded Conference by the Secretary-General. He also mentioned the significance of the change in Turkish Cypriot leadership in potentially facilitating the resumption of talks based on a Bizonal Bicommunal Federation, stressing that the current situation cannot be considered a solution to the Cyprus problem.
Cyprus has remained divided since 1974, following Turkey's invasion and occupation of its northern third. Despite numerous UN-led peace talks, a resolution has yet to be achieved. The most recent negotiations, held in July 2017 at the Swiss resort of Crans-Montana, ended without a conclusive outcome.