Greek foreign minister meets UN Cyprus envoy in New York

New York, United States. Greek Foreign Minister Giorgos Gerapetritis met UN Cyprus envoy Maria Angela Holguin, the Greek foreign ministry said on Thursday. Neither made a statement after the meeting.

Diplomatic meetings continue

President Nikos Christodoulides met Holguin earlier this week, and she is also expected to meet Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhurman. Both Cypriot leaders are due to meet UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres later this week.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan met Guterres on Tuesday. Erdogan also met British Prime Minister Andy Burnham, who later met Christodoulides.

After meeting Christodoulides, Holguin said the UN was “continuing its efforts” on the Cyprus problem. No concrete progress has been made since Guterres visited the island in July.

Differences remain

During that visit, Guterres promised an enlarged meeting involving the island’s two sides, guarantor powers Greece, Turkey and the United Kingdom, and the UN, “after adequate progress” on confidence-building measures, the meeting’s methodology and the substance of the talks.

Christodoulides and Erhurman have met three times since July without concrete progress. The sides remain openly divided over political equality, crossing points and the methodology of the talks.

During the summer, the Greek Cypriot side took initiatives to cancel international events held by the Turkish Cypriot community, including a children’s football camp organised by FC Barcelona and a music festival in Kyrenia. Erhurman said last week that such initiatives “undermine trust” and that moving the process forward requires the “conducive climate” mentioned by Guterres.