Nicosia, Cyprus. Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhurman said on Wednesday he was more hopeful of a Cyprus settlement following United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’ visit to the island.
He described the visit as important and positive after a trilateral meeting with Guterres and President Nikos Christodoulides.
UN delegation and meetings
Erhurman said Guterres’ visit demonstrated the UN chief’s interest in the Cyprus problem. He also highlighted the seniority of the delegation accompanying Guterres, which included Undersecretary-General for Peacebuilding Rosemary DiCarlo and Undersecretary-General for Peace Operations Jean-Pierre Lacroix.
He said Guterres had met Christodoulides in the south and the Turkish Cypriot delegation in the north, which he said reiterated the status of two equal leaders under the UN umbrella.
Meetings held in Nicosia
Erhurman also pointed to the fact that the meetings were held in Nicosia. He said he had stressed after his election last year that expanded meetings in Geneva and New York had produced no result, while meetings in Cyprus would be more convenient.
Although there were not many concrete outcomes, he said the visit had been important and positive in terms of its results.
Confidence-building measures
Erhurman stressed the importance of confidence-building measures between the island’s two sides, saying positive steps would be needed if negotiations were established.
He said the Turkish Cypriot side had presented its four-point plan for restarting negotiations as a methodology, adding that a solution could not be reached without properly laying the foundations through meaningful progress on confidence-building measures and methodology.
Erhurman said Guterres’ approach during the meetings and his recent statements had confirmed this position to some extent.
He also said Guterres had held contacts with representatives of the governments of Cyprus’ guarantor powers in recent weeks and had expressed confidence in their continued support.