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President Nicos Anastasiades on Tuesday told the UN of his readiness for a social meeting with the Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci that would take place without preconditions.
Anastasiades held talks UNSG Special Representative in Cyprus Elizabeth Spehar who is continuing to talk with both sides to arrange a dinner date to break the ice.
The UN is currently engaged in an effort to arrange a social meeting between Anastasiades and Akinci, with a view to bringing the two sides back to the negotiating table after peace talks collapsed in acrimony last summer.
Government Spokesman Prodromos Prodromou said that the UN is trying to arrange a meeting between Anastasiades and Akinci and that the President reiterated to Spehar his readiness for a social meeting with no strings attached.
"We have seen in the past few months a willingness to start a process again on Cyprus talks"
"The (UN) effort is continuous. 3. Our response is a given," said Prodromou.
Spehar said: "All I can say is that I am continuing to talk with both sides and as soon as there is more news I will surely let you know."
Asked if any preconditions are set out by the Turkish Cypriot side, Prodromou declined to answer by saying it was up to the UN to comment.
But Nicosia has made clear that no formal negotiations can take place while Ankara continues is trying to block the government's energy search.
“We still have a window of opportunity for the reunification of Cyprus,” Turkish Cypriot Foreign Minister Kudret Özersay said on Tuesday after a joint press conference with Turkey’s Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu.
Cavusoglu said the Greek Cypriot approach for Turkey to have “zero soldiers” and “zero guarantees” is “beyond a dream.”
UN-backed peace talks collapsed in Switzerland last year over efforts for Turkey to drop its intervention rights on Cyprus - along with Greece and Britain - and give a timeline when its troops would leave the island. in the event of a settlement,
