The situation in the region was thoroughly discussed at the meeting of the President of the Republic of Cyprus with the US Secretary of State, who made an extraordinary visit to Cyprus as part of contacts in the region, Government Spokesman Konstantinos Letymbiotis said in a written statement on Sunday. According to the Spokesperson, President of the Republic, Nikos Christodoulides, had a meeting in the afternoon with the US Secretary of State, Anthony Blinken. During the meeting, which took place at Larnaca airport, he said, ‘the situation in the area, as it is developing, was thoroughly discussed.’ He added that Blinken thanked the Republic of Cyprus ‘for the very important role it plays in the issue of the evacuation of nationals of various countries, including the USA.’ At the meeting, Letymbiotis said, the initiative of the Republic of Cyprus for a maritime corridor for the delivery of humanitarian aid from Cyprus, with Gaza as final destination, was also discussed in detail, while the need for an immediate de-escalation of the ongoing crisis was stressed. He added that the President of the Republic also briefed the US Secretary of State about the Republic of Cyprus’ ongoing efforts for the resumption of negotiations on the Cyprus issue from where they left off and the appointment of a UN Secretary General envoy towards this goal. Letymbiotis noted that the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Constantinos Kombos, also attended the meeting. 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