Cyprus President Christodoulides to meet Erhurman ahead of UN General Assembly
Cyprus President Nikos Christodoulides and Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhurman will hold their final meeting before the UN General Assembly in New York on September 17. The talks are scheduled to begin at 11:00, Cyprus Mail reports.
Christodoulides’ position
Before a previous meeting this month, Christodoulides told the Turkish Cypriot newspaper Yeni Duzen that the sides “do not have a plan B.” According to him, the only possible solution is the reunification of Cyprus, while the current status quo prevents the country from fully realizing its potential.
After the talks at the old Nicosia airport, the president said the sides had continued discussions in three areas: methodology, substantive issues, and confidence-building measures. He noted that there was a common understanding on certain issues, while differences and differing approaches remained on others.
Erhurman’s statements
After the same meeting, Erhurman said he had called on Christodoulides to refrain from initiatives that, in his view, undermine trust. He said the sides had failed to agree on new confidence-building measures, but had set out their positions on external and internal initiatives which, according to him, weaken the existing level of trust.
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The Turkish Cypriot leader also stressed the need to create a favorable climate, mentioned by UN Secretary-General António Guterres. In Erhurman’s view, this requires both new confidence-building measures and an end to actions that undermine trust.
Earlier, Erhurman criticized the Republic of Cyprus over the cancellation of international events in the north of the island, including a children’s football camp organized by FC Barcelona and a music festival in Kyrenia. He also objected to the arrests of people accused of illegally using or selling real estate in the north of the island that had previously belonged to Greek Cypriots, as well as to Cyprus deepening its relations with Israel.
Negotiator Menelaos Menelaou is due to meet Erhurman’s special representative Mehmet Dana the following day in the afternoon.
