Nicosia, Cyprus. United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Tuesday he would do everything possible to support Cypriots on the path towards a solution to the Cyprus problem, following a meeting with President Nikos Christodoulides. He described his visit as one of solidarity and reaffirmed his commitment to achieving a solution.
Support for negotiations
Guterres said progress depended primarily on Cypriots themselves, while Greece, Turkey and the United Kingdom, the island’s three guarantor powers, also had a role to play.
He said he would support both Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots at what he described as an important moment.
New initiative
The meeting took place amid a new initiative aimed at resuming substantive negotiations on the Cyprus problem.
The initiative is expected to lead to an enlarged meeting later in the summer involving the island’s two sides, Greece, Turkey, the United Kingdom and the United Nations.
Guterres was also due to meet Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhurman later on Tuesday morning.
Preparatory contacts
Ahead of his visit, Guterres held a telephone conversation with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan on Sunday. Christodoulides travelled to Athens, where he met Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis.
Mitsotakis said Guterres’ planned departure from office at the end of the year had created a sense of urgency, adding that it was time to explore the possibility of turning the opportunity into reality.
On Friday, Fidan met Holguin in Ankara. Holguin had arrived from Brussels, where separate meetings were held with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and the European Commission’s envoy for the Cyprus problem, Raffaele Fitto.