Guterres and Erdogan discuss Cyprus problem at UN General Assembly

New York, United States. United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan exchanged views on the Cyprus problem during a meeting on Tuesday on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly.

The UN said the two leaders also discussed the war in Ukraine and the situation across the Middle East.

Erdogan’s address

The meeting followed Erdogan’s address to the General Assembly, in which he said the “sovereign equality and equal international status of the Turkish Cypriot people” must be recognised.

He called on the international community to recognise and establish political, diplomatic and economic relations with the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, adding that the isolation faced by Turkish Cypriots must end.

Prospects for enlarged meeting

The UN’s high-level week began without concrete progress on the Cyprus problem since Guterres visited the island in July.

During that visit, Guterres said he would convene an enlarged meeting involving the island’s two sides, the three guarantor powers Greece, Turkey and the United Kingdom, and the UN, after adequate progress had been achieved on confidence-building measures, the meeting’s methodology and the substance of talks.

Differences remain

President Nikos Christodoulides and Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhurman have met three times since July, but no concrete progress has been achieved.

The two sides remain in disagreement over the meaning of political equality, crossing points and the methodology of 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 the initiatives undermined trust between the two sides and stressed last week that creating the conducive climate mentioned by Guterres was crucial to moving the process forward.

Christodoulides said on Monday that behind-the-scenes meetings in New York this week may be key to developments on the Cyprus problem.