Our commitment to convening an informal multilateral meeting on the Cyprus issue as soon as possible remains unwavering, Government Spokesperson Mr. Konstantinos Letympiotis said today.

Speaking to reporters in Paphos, following the memorial service for those who died during the coup, and when asked about the contacts of the UN Secretary-General’s Personal Envoy on the Cyprus issue, Ms. María Ángela Olguín, the Spokesperson said that “Ms. Olgin will hold her meetings in Brussels. Her schedule, of course, is communicated by the United Nations. It is known that this week the President of the European Commission, along with several other leaders, will be in Paris at the invitation of President Macron. If there are any changes to Ms. Olgin’s schedule, she will announce them herself.

In any case, however, her visit to Brussels will take place, and the meetings there will serve as a follow-up to those held on the sidelines of the NATO summit last week; after Brussels, our country, where she will be able to discuss the next steps with President Christodoulides and Mr. Erciyuman.

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As for us, our approach and our commitment remains unwavering: an informal multilateral meeting must be convened as soon as possible in the presence of the three guarantor powers, with the European Union playing an active role. The catalytic role that the European Union can play has been proven in practice. This is recognized by all parties involved and, of course, by the United Nations Secretary-General himself.

Therefore, the next informal multilateral meeting should aim to resume substantive negotiations from the point at which they were suspended. It is now up to occupying Turkey to demonstrate a constructive attitude toward this new initiative undertaken by Mr. Guterres.”

When asked whether the possibility of convening a multilateral meeting this summer is remote, the Spokesperson said, “We have not received any such information. If there is the will and a sincere intention to convene an informal multilateral meeting, there is time to arrange one.

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I repeat, however, that the goal was not—and could never be—an end in itself: to convene an informal multilateral meeting simply for the sake of convening it. This informal multilateral meeting should—and does—aim to announce the resumption of negotiations with a view to a definitive resolution of the Cyprus issue. Therefore, it is now up to Turkey, the occupying power, to demonstrate that it has this determination, this sincere will, and this intention to engage constructively in the efforts of the United Nations Secretary-General.”.

When asked whether the President of the Republic had received any briefing from European institutions regarding the NATO Summit and whether there had been any message from Turkey on the matter, the Spokesperson said, “Of course he had. We have already announced this. The President of the Republic had a telephone conversation with both the President of the European Commission and the President of the European Council, as well as with the Turkish President and the Turkish Foreign Minister, and spoke with both of them by phone. Both of them contacted the President of the Republic early that morning. This was significant in itself—that they chose, on their own initiative and so soon, to brief the President of the Republic. An exchange of views took place. What I believe is now becoming clear from all the statements, both from Turkey and the United Nations, is Turkey’s interest in strengthening Euro-Turkish relations. What has become clear once again, including through the European institutions, is that progress in EU-Turkey relations also depends on the Cyprus issue, and the Cyprus issue is not a national problem; but a European problem, and as such it must be addressed by Turkey itself if it truly wishes to see progress in EU-Turkey relations.”

When asked what the President of the Republic’s statements today regarding health issues entail, the Spokesperson said that “as the President of the Republic has said many times, the sectors of health and education remain priorities, because they certainly affect not only citizens’ daily lives but also require a strategic plan for future generations.

Particularly in the health sector, another expanded meeting was held last week under the President of the Republic with OKYPY, of course in the presence of the Minister of Health and the Minister of Finance, to discuss the progress and evaluate the status of OKYPY’s infrastructure development projects, these essential projects, in all the districts of our country. I remind you that the President of the Republic had announced 128 million euros. Added to this is another 15 million, which, of course, is for the Chrysokhou City Hospital. A hospital that has been under discussion for years but is now on track to be built. And, of course, another approximately 67 million, bringing the total to 200 million euros for infrastructure alone, taking into account the major changes and reforms that have taken place in the health sector over the past three years, such as the Patient Ombudsman and the Clinical Evidence Center.

Therefore, what we want is to take this great, tremendous asset that we have as a country, the General Health System, to develop it, advance it, and make even greater progress with it, along with those modern, European-standard infrastructures in the health sector. And this will be achieved through a very specific plan that has been drawn up and, of course, through the state’s own contribution, since it has the capacity to provide substantial support and reinforcement using the resources available to the Republic of Cyprus.”

When asked if there are timelines for all of this, the Spokesperson said that “there are specific timelines for everything, not just for the start of work. You understand that there are procedures that must be followed, whether regarding the completion of the design or the announcement of the designs. That is why I said that part of the meeting the day before yesterday was devoted to evaluating the timelines for the 128-million projects that had been set at a previous meeting. A second part concerns the additional projects totaling approximately 70 million that have now been incorporated into this strategic plan. However, all of these are accompanied by specific timelines, as has been announced, in a very precise manner, and the goal is for these timelines to be adhered to, and for these timelines to be strictly followed—which is why these meetings, particularly those led by the President of the Republic, will continue.”

When asked what the next reform would entail, the Spokesperson said that “the next major reform facing us as a country is pension reform. As is well known—and as the President of the Republic has mentioned many times— the Minister of Labor and Social Insurance, always in collaboration with the Ministry of Finance, have drawn up a comprehensive framework for pension reform.

The goal of a government, the goal of a state, is, on the one hand, to improve public finances and to have a strong, resilient economy. This is not the only goal, however; it is the prerequisite for establishing the solid foundation needed to help increase citizens’ disposable income. And we have put this into practice through tax reform, through the two increases in the Minimum Guaranteed Income, and through the restoration of the ATA to 100% after many years, and the next important step is pension reform, which will take into account the current needs of our retirees and ensure a resilient social security system.

In the immediate future, the Ministry of Labor and Social Security has already held discussions and presented to the partners the basic framework of the executive branch’s proposals; and the positions of the social partners as well as those of the social partners and political forces, so that a comprehensive framework—one that will be beneficial to retirees, such as tax reform—can be drawn up as soon as possible.”.

When asked about the timeline for this, Mr. Letympiotis said that “I think that after September we will be in a position to submit it to the House of Representatives, but only after the necessary consultation has been completed—which we do not view We do not view consultation as a mere formality, but—as has been evident in the tax reform—as a substantive tool for achieving something far more beneficial.”