UN Chief Antonio Guterres reportedly said that he is fully briefed regarding the proposals put forward by President of Cyprus Nikos Christodoulides, and underlined the need for a resumption in negotiations after the elections in Turkey, during a short conversation on the sidelines of the working lunch of the 27 leaders of the EU with the UN Secretary General. According to government sources, Christodoulides had the opportunity to exchange views with Guterres before the beginning of the working lunch, in the presence of Commission President Ursula von der Leyen who was also attending. The UNSG had given the green light for this meeting after being briefed by UN Under-Secretary-General Rosemary DiCarlo on her recent conversation with President Christodoulides in Cyprus. According to the same sources, Guterres said during the meeting that he has been fully briefed by DiCarlo on the discussion she had with Christodoulides, regarding his proposal for a more active involvement of the EU in the efforts to restart negotiations. Guterres also reportedly underlined the need for the creation of those conditions necessary to resume negotiations after the elections in Turkey. Christodoulides repeated the aspects of his proposal and said he was ready to travel to New York, if the UNSG deems it necessary. After the end of the working lunch with the 27 leaders, Antonio Guterres departed from the European Council building, as was scheduled. Cyprus has been divided since 1974 when Turkey invaded and occupied its northern third. Many rounds of UN-brokered talks have failed to reunify Cyprus under a federal roof with the latest round in the Swiss resort of Crans Montana in July 2017 ending inconclusively.
Source: Cyprus News Agency