Cypriot president briefs UN chief on EU push

President of the Republic Nikos Christodoulides and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres held a telephone conversation on Thursday, during which they exchanged views on the next steps regarding the effort to resume the Cyprus talks and agreed to stay in contact on the matter.

According to a written statement by Government Spokesman Konstantinos Letymbiotis, the UN Secretary General reaffirmed his commitment to the solution of the Cyprus problem within the relevant UN Security Council resolutions.

The President of the Republic reaffirmed his readiness to resume the talks process - with the aim of resolving the Cyprus issue - from where they were interrupted in Crans Montana, and within the framework of the relevant resolutions of the United Nations Security Council.

It is added that in this context, the President of the Republic underlined the added value of appointing an Envoy of the Secretary-General for the Cyprus issue.

During their telephone conversation, the President of the Republic also informed the Secretary-General about the outcome of his contacts with European leaders and the heads of the institutions of the European Union, regarding his proposal for a more active EU involvement in the efforts to lift the deadlock and resume the Cyprus talks on the agreed basis, in support of UN efforts.

The Spokesman said in his written statement that the UN Secretary-General reaffirmed his commitment for the solution of the Cyprus issue within the relevant resolutions of the Security Council.

They also exchanged views on the next steps in the direction of the effort to resume the talks and agreed to stay in contact, the Spokesman concluded.

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.