The view that positive developments may emerge from the meeting of the leaders with the Personal Envoy of the UN Secretary-General, María Ángela Olguín, on Monday—which will lead to an expanded conference where a decision will be made to resume talks on the Cyprus issue— if and when there is political will on the other side as well, said Victor Papadopoulos, Director of the Press Office of the Office of the President of the Republic, in statements to CNA.
Meanwhile, relevant sources told CNA that what remains to be seen is whether any agreement regarding the new confidence-building measures will be finalized and announced on Monday.
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In response to a question from CNA regarding the opening of four new crossing points—specifically in Mia Milia, Athienou-Pyroi-Aglantzia, Louroutzina-Lybia, and Kampo-Karavostasi, the same sources stated that these are under discussion.
When asked by CNA about Monday’s trilateral meeting between the President of the Republic, the Turkish Cypriot leader, and the Personal Envoy of the UN Secretary-General, Mr. Papadopoulos noted that “we are at a decisive and critical juncture” regarding the progress of the UN Secretary-General’s efforts to resume talks.
He noted that the President of the Republic’s proposals to the Turkish Cypriot leader—which the President communicated both verbally and in writing to Secretary-General António Guterres during meeting they had in New York as well as in a letter he sent recently, “we believe they offer a way forward on all three issues that the UN Secretary-General requested be discussed and on which progress should be made, namely, economic confidence-building measures, the methodology, and the substance of the Cyprus issue.”
Specifically regarding the economic confidence-building measures, some of the President’s proposals have already been implemented, Mr. Papadopoulos said. He referred to the joint meeting of the two leaders with the Technical Committees on Youth Issues and Cultural Heritage, as well as the exchange of works of art, while, other issues, such as the removal of roadblocks, the handover of the Famagusta city wall to the United Nations, and the opening of the city’s port under the supervision of the European Commission for Turkish Cypriots and Greek Cypriots are under discussion, he said.
Mr. Papadopoulos also noted that the President of the Republic discussed the methodology “so that we can move toward talks, but also on how these talks will be conducted so that they yield results and lead to a solution to the Cyprus problem.”
“And in essence, our side’s persistence and proposal to enshrine the points of convergence from the previous negotiating framework have been successful, as the United Nations has moved forward with documenting these points of convergence,” he said, expressing satisfaction that this proposal had been adopted.
Mr. Papadopoulos also referred to the European Union’s involvement—following the President of the Republic’s efforts to that end—in linking Euro-Turkish relations to the progress of the Cyprus issue, and “for the European Union, through the heads of its institutions, to express its interest to the Secretary-General regarding the nature of the solution,” as well as by appointing the Vice President of the European Commission as a special representative for the Cyprus issue.
“We believe that all of these measures can create—and are creating—the conditions for the resumption of talks, provided there is political will on the other side as well,” said Mr. Papadopoulos. “And in this spirit, with this willingness to overcome the problems, and with the many proposals made by the President of the Republic, we believe that Monday’s meeting will bear fruit, and we will see positive developments that will lead us to an expanded conference where the resumption of talks will be decided,” he noted.
