“It was a good and constructive discussion, which will continue during Ms. Olgin’s visit to Cyprus, and I ask you, I fully understand your role as well, not to ask me any questions on any subject.”
Nikos Christodoulides – President of the Republic
The President of the Republic’s radio silence following today’s one-on-one meeting with the Turkish Cypriot leader sends two key messages.
ΣΧΕΤΙΚΑ ΑΡΘΡΑ
READ ALSO: Christodoulides Heads into New Meeting with Erhurman with an Alternative Proposal on Roadblocks and a Positive Stance on “Bold Measures” | AlphaNews
First, that the two sides have dived into the deep end in an effort to agree on something significant, particularly regarding Confidence-Building Measures; and second, that they wish to avoid any tension while awaiting the arrival of the UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy, Maria Olgin.
The outcome suggests that Christodoulides and Erciyuman are leaving the important and significant matters to Maria Olgin, who is arriving in Cyprus on Thursday. On Friday, she will meet with the President of the Republic.
READ ALSO: “No” to statements from Christodoulides and Erciyurman: The meeting was constructive, but no joint communiqué was issued by the United Nations | AlphaNews
As Alpha has learned, the main effort is focused on the Athienou roadblock, where progress has been made in the sense that the traffic issue has been resolved.
However, the effort is not yet complete, as the Turkish Cypriot side appears to be demanding the opening of two roadblocks—at Mia Milia and Louroutzina—in order to agree.
“So we are constantly putting forward proposals and new ideas; we want to see progress, and we are proving it through our actions. It’s not just through statements—it’s through concrete proposals, actions, and ideas. And we are here, and I hope that today there will be some positive results, especially in light of the visit by the Secretary-General’s personal envoy.”
Nikos Christodoulides – President of the Republic
Nikos Christodoulides stated that he put forward a new alternative proposal aimed at opening the roadblocks, while he reiterated the proposal regarding Famagusta, despite the fact that it has been rejected by the Turkish Cypriot side.
This move has raised questions within AKEL.
AKEL
It is reasonable to ask whether submitting such an ambitious proposal under the current circumstances can substantially contribute to the effort to resume negotiations, or whether there is a risk that the discussion will be diverted from the real issue at hand.
At the same time, Nikos Christodoulides put forward a proposal regarding the methodology of the talks.
Assessment and Satisfaction
No statement was issued from the Turkish Cypriot side, other than that the meeting between the two leaders lasted one hour and ten minutes.
As reported, Tufan Erhurman will depart for Ankara on Thursday to speak at a conference and will return on Friday.
However, the presence of the two leaders at Technical Committee meetings added a note of optimism to the talks.
This was particularly true at the Cultural Heritage session, where the two co-chairs presented Christodoulides and Erciyuman with photographs of the Church of Panagia tis Lysis and the Tuzla Mosque in Larnaca.
These are monuments where restoration work was recently completed.
The two leaders also attended a meeting of the Youth Committee and the Civil Society Advisory Body.
Watch Giorgos Georgiadis’s report:
