Cyprus Pres. meets Turkish Cypriot leader after 7 months

After seven months, the president of the Republic of Cyprus, Nikos Anastasiades, and the Turkish Cypriot leader, Ersin Tatar, met yesterday Wednesday evening in the context of the reception of the United Nations in Cyprus held at Ledra Palace, on the occasion of the completion of the year.

The conversation

Anastasiades and Tatar actually had a more than ten minute conversation as part of the reception, with the participation of the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General in Cyprus, Colin Stewart, the negotiator of the Cypriot side, Menelaus Menelaou and the special representative of the Turkish Cypriot leader, Ergun Olgun . Afterwards, the two leaders were photographed together with Mr. Stewart shaking hands.

Speaking during the reception which was attended by associates of the two leaders, members of the diplomatic corps accredited to Cyprus, members of the bi-communal technical committees as well as members of civil society from both sides, Mr. Stewart emphasized the importance of to keep the dialogue open, despite disagreements and any obstacles.

He pointed out that there are great possibilities for solving the Cyprus problem and, despite the challenges, the United Nations in Cyprus will not relax its efforts to help the two sides reach a common ground.

It won’t be the last time…

He expressed the hope that this will not be the last time that Anastasiades and Tatar meet, given that the term of President Anastasiades will end shortly, whom he thanked for his cooperation over the years with the family of UN in Cyprus.

Mr Stewart noted that although 2022 had been a year of challenges there had nevertheless been achievements, he thanked the Greek Cypriot negotiator and the Turkish Cypriot special representative and praised the bi-community technical committees for their persistence in finding common ground in a wide range of areas for the common benefit despite the obstacles they may have faced.

The UN official, among other things, said that a study was completed in relation to the sustainability of electronic and electrical waste management, he referred to the increase in the volume of trade between the two sides based on the Green Line Regulation and noted that this year for first time we saw trade in processed foods of non-animal origin.

Mr. Stewart also mentioned that during the last ten years many issues were discussed in depth during the various negotiations that took place, while regarding the MOUs there was the permanent interconnectivity of the electrical systems, the interoperability in mobile telephony and the opening of new crossing points.

“Keeping the dialogue open”

He also said that the two sides advanced proposals for trust-building and cooperation, noting that elements of these proposals dominated his discussions with the Turkish Cypriot special representative and the Greek Cypriot negotiator and that they continue to explore the possibilities of moving forward with initiatives where there is common ground. .

He also emphasized that the crossing points show the benefits of increased contacts and that such contacts remain vital to keeping alive the hope for a mutually agreed solution to the Cyprus problem.

Mr. Stewart said that “we look forward to continuing our cooperation in the new year and it will be even more critical, as the two leaders have just discussed, to keep the dialogue open despite disagreements and despite any obstacles that may arise.”

“The work you all are doing is extremely important and commendable. With the continued support of the leaders we will continue our weekly meetings with the representatives of the two leaders and we will continue to support the technical committees to develop new agreements”, he concluded.