President, Nikos Christodoulides, said on Thursday that he is hoping for positive news to come out of UN Under-Secretary-General Rosemary DiCarlo’s contacts in Ankara.
Replying to questions in Limassol about DiCarlo’s meetings in Athens, he said that he had “received an update from the Greek Foreign Minister about what has been discussed”, as expected following his own meeting with DiCarlo on Monday.
He said “what is important is to see the results of her meeting in Turkey today. That’s the crux of the matter.”
President Christodoulides further noted that as agreed with DiCarlo, after the completion of her contacts in Turkey, “we will have an update on the results of this meeting, on the reaction, on how we proceed. Let’s hope there will be positive news,” he concluded.
Regarding reports about activities deriving from an illegal organisation, President Christodoulides said there is no reason for concern regarding the state’s security.
Invited to comment about reports of illegal organisation activities on the island, the President said that “arrests have been made, and there are ongoing warrants for more arrests that will be executed.”
He clarified that, as he was informed last night, “there is no reason for concern regarding the state’s security.”
However, he refrained from making any additional comments on the matter, stating that “it seems, at first glance, that some are exploiting some of our fellow citizens who are in difficult situations.”
He urged everyone to wait for the investigations to be concluded before the Police issue a public statement on the matter.
Cyprus has been divided since 1974, when Turkey invaded and occupied its northern third. Repeated rounds of UN-led peace talks have so far failed to yield results. The latest round of negotiations, in July 2017 at the Swiss resort of Crans-Montana ended inconclusively.
On October 15, 2024, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres hosted an informal dinner with Cyprus President Nikos Christodoulides and Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar in New York, encouraging “the leaders to consider how to bridge the gap in their positions and rebuild trust to allow movement leading to a settlement.”
At the meeting, President Christodoulides and Tatar agreed to have an informal meeting in a broader format in the near future, under the auspices of the Secretary-General, to discuss the way forward. They also agreed to have a meeting in Cyprus to explore the possibility of opening new crossings. A first such meeting took place on January 20, 2025. DiCarlo visited Cyprus on Monday and Tuesday and had contacts on the island concerning the informal five-party meeting. After Athens, she is expected to pay a visit to Ankara on Thursday.
Also read: Senior UN official to continue talks on Cyprus issue in Athens
Source: CNA
