Nicosia, Cyprus. President Nikos Christodoulides said on Monday that efforts to resume negotiations on the Cyprus problem have not been frozen, despite United Nations envoy Maria Angela Holguin postponing her latest round of contacts until after next week’s Nato leaders’ summit in Ankara.
He said all processes remain underway with the aim of convening an enlarged meeting at which the resumption of talks would be announced.
Christodoulides says effort continues
Christodoulides said “the only thing which is certain is that the effort is not frozen, the effort continues”. He said Holguin will go to Brussels on July 13 and referred to the Nato summit, adding that “all processes are in full swing, with the aim of convening an enlarged meeting, during which the resumption of talks will be announced”.
He repeated that “nothing has been frozen, this great effort continues”, and said, “we support this great effort being undertaken by [UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres], and we hope that there will be a response from everyone”.
He described the current moment as “a very critical juncture” and said contacts are ongoing in Cyprus, in New York and at the European Union level, “with one goal and one goal only, to have a positive result”.
Role of the European Union
Christodoulides said “this mobility began through our own efforts” and added that the European Union has taken a “more active role” in the Cyprus problem in recent years. He also highlighted Holguin’s initial appointment in 2024.
He said the government’s aim from the beginning had been “to connect potential developments in relations between Europe and Turkey, as Turkey considers progress on that issue as a strategic goal, to the Cyprus problem”. He added, “There is progress in that direction. We hope to have the result we expect, which is nothing other than the resumption of talks.”
Holguin’s planned Brussels visit
Holguin is expected to meet European Council President Antonio Costa in Brussels on July 13.
The Ankara Nato summit comes amid discussion regarding security guarantees in a post-solution Cyprus, centring on the idea of those guarantees being provided through a Nato-based structure.
Nato response on guarantees discussion
According to the report, those guarantees may take the form of the new Cypriot republic’s accession to Nato, together with the presence of Nato troops from Turkey, Greece, France, the United Kingdom and the United States on the island.
However, when asked about the prospect of Holguin meeting Nato officials in Brussels, which is also home to Nato headquarters, and about Nato-based security guarantees in a post-solution Cyprus, a Nato official told the Cyprus Mail that “there are no meetings planned with the envoy and the topic has not been discussed at Nato”.
Participants expected at Ankara summit
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will host next week’s Nato summit. Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, representing the island’s other two guarantor powers, are also expected to attend, alongside Antonio Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.