Newsroom
President Nikos Christodoulides and Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhürman agreed on Wednesday to increase the frequency of their meetings as efforts to advance the Cyprus settlement process continue.
The two leaders met for almost three hours at the offices of the UN Good Offices mission in the Nicosia buffer zone, with most of the meeting held privately between them.
Speaking after returning to the Presidential Palace, Christodoulides described the meeting as a good one and said the talks had a positive tone.
He said preparations for the meeting had been based on positions and guidance outlined publicly by UN Secretary-General António Guterres during his recent visit to Cyprus.
“We are on the right track based on what the Secretary-General said,” Christodoulides told reporters after the meeting.
According to a UN statement issued afterwards, the leaders reviewed progress on the next steps identified during Guterres’ visit and agreed that their meetings should take place once a week or more frequently, depending on circumstances.
The talks covered substantive matters, including areas where the two sides have already recorded convergences, as well as issues concerning the methodology of the negotiations and confidence-building measures (CBMs).
The UN said both leaders also expressed their appreciation to Guterres for his recent visit to Cyprus and his continued support for efforts to reach a settlement of the Cyprus problem.
As part of the agreed steps, Christodoulides and Erhürman are expected to announce on Thursday the members of the Steering Committee of the Civil Society Advisory Body.
Erhürman left the UN mission first on Wednesday afternoon, followed shortly afterwards by Christodoulides.
The decision to hold meetings weekly or more frequently marks a more regular format for direct contact between the two leaders as they work on the next stage of the UN-backed process.
The current talks are taking place following Guterres’ recent engagement with the two sides and his call for progress towards a settlement of the Cyprus problem.
