Leaders will break bread in Geneva at 5+1

The Geneva meeting on Cyprus "is going ahead in person," United Nations officials said during Monday’s Q&A session following a noon briefing in New York.

Stephane Dujarric, spokesperson for the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, made the comments online after reporter Apostolos Zoupaniotis asked whether pandemic restrictions would apply in any way to the upcoming meeting in Switzerland.

"We… the meeting is going ahead in person," Dujarric said.

The UN spokesperson pointed out that special envoy Jane Lute had visited Cyprus over the weekend, "as part of her consultations she is carrying out on behalf of the Secretary General with the two Cypriot leaders and the guarantor powers."

Lute has already sent the program of the Geneva meeting to the leaders, the Cyprus News Agency reported, saying “it became known it will kick off with a dinner to be hosted by Antonio Guterres for the leaders and their delegations on April 27.”

Informal meeting proceedings are scheduled to take place the next day, followed by bilateral consultations and then another fresh meeting, CNA reported.

Dujarric said Lute’s weekend consultations were in preparation for the informal sit-down, the Geneva 5+1 meeting as it came to be known, where Guterres plans to sit with the five parties and assess whether the there is common ground for meaningful peace talks.

“We are very grateful to the Swiss authorities for their support in hosting, in allowing us to host the meeting at the UN premises. The Swiss have been very helpful to us in the past on hosting talks on all sorts of different issues," the UN spokesperson said.

The meeting will take place from April 27 to 29, Dujarric said.