Nicosia: Government Spokesman Konstantinos Letymbiotis has said that the contacts of the UN Secretary General’s personal envoy for Cyprus, Maria Angela Holguin, in Brussels, are important, adding that she would also meet with the President of the European Council.
According to Cyprus News Agency, Letymbiotis noted that Holguin was in the United Kingdom on Tuesday, where she held a meeting with the Minister for Europe, Steven Dowty. Dowty is the representative of the British Government at the multilateral conference and will also be present at the next multilateral conference. Today, Holguin is in Brussels for a series of contacts, including a meeting with the European Union Special Envoy for Cyprus, Johannes Hahn, and the President of the European Council, Antonio Costa.
CNA has learned that after Brussels, Holguin may also travel to Paris. Responding to a remark that Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar had announced that the next expanded conference on Cyprus will take place on July 16 and 17, and asked if there is an invitation from the UN on those dates, Letymbiotis said that “we will respect the procedures of the United Nations”. He emphasized that official announcements from the United Nations should be expected soon.
Cyprus has been divided since 1974, following Turkey’s invasion and occupation of its northern third. Repeated rounds of UN-led peace talks have so far failed to yield results. The latest round of negotiations, held in July 2017 at the Swiss resort of Crans-Montana ended without conclusion. The UN Secretary-General Ant³nio Guterres has announced an informal meeting on Cyprus in a broader format for the end of July. This follows a similar meeting in Geneva, on March 17-18, where both sides agreed to proceed with initiatives, including opening crossing points and creating a Technical Committee on Youth.
The UN Secretary-General announced in early May the appointment of Mara Angela Holgun Cu©llar of Colombia as his Personal Envoy on Cyprus, tasked with reengaging with the parties to work on next steps on the Cyprus issue. Holgun had previously served as Personal Envoy on Cyprus from January to July 2024. The European Commission has designated Johannes Hahn as Special Envoy for Cyprus to support the settlement process in close cooperation with Holgun. The next meeting on Cyprus in a broader format is scheduled for this July.