Jenca's Cyprus mission explores UN's common ground

UN Secretary-General's Spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said the Assistant Secretary-General for Europe, Central Asia and Americas, Miroslav Jenča, visited Cyprus from 27 to 29 August, as part of the UN’ continued engagement with the parties to explore common ground on the way forward on the Cyprus issue. Jenča will be in Turkey from today until 1 September for contacts with the authorities, he said.

Speaking yesterday at the noon media briefing in New York, Dujarric answered questions about the activities in Cyprus of Miroslav Jenča, saying that the Assistant Secretary-General met separately with the Greek Cypriot leader, Nikos Christodoulides, and the Turkish Cypriot leader, Ersin Tatar, as well as their representatives.

Dujarric also said that recent developments on the ground and operational issues related to the mandate of UNFICYP (UN Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus) were also discussed.

He also mentioned that Jenča also visited sector four of the peacekeeping mission, meeting with UN peacekeepers, expressing his appreciation for their professionalism and dedicated service.

Dujarric said that Jenča also paid a visit to the Committee on Missing Persons.

Finally, he said that Jenča will now go on to Ankara for meetings with the authorities there on 30 August-1 September.

During the briefing Dujarric was asked if there was any progress on the disputed road in the buffer zone that Turkish Cypriots were trying to build and if the Secretary-General has any plans to try and meet again with the Greek and Turkish Cypriot leaders. He answered by saying that “we will keep you updated as to whatever meetings may happen on the sidelines of the GA." He also said that there are "no updates on that situation as far as I'm aware.”

Members of the Security Council condemned on Tuesday, August 22, 2023, the incidents in the buffer zone, in the village of Pyla, in Larnaca district, with assaults against UN peacekeepers, reiterating their full support for UNFICYP

On Friday August 18, 2023 Turkish Cypriots punched and kicked a group of international peacekeepers who obstructed crews illegally working on a road that would encroach on a U.N. controlled buffer zone.

The attack happened as peacekeepers stood in the way of work crews building a road to connect the Turkish occupied village of Arsos with the mixed Greek Cypriot-Turkish Cypriot village of Pyla, inside the buffer zone.

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.