Anastasiades and Akinci willing to meet in New York
Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades and Turkish-Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci reportedly expressed their readiness Friday to resume talks in New York next month along with United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.
The two men held an informal meeting Friday at the residence of the UN’s special representative Elizabeth Spehar in the United Nations buffer zone in Nicosia.
“The two leaders had a sincere and constructive exchange of views and they discussed in depth the basic principles. They decided to continue engaging in the efforts undertaken by Ms Jane Holl Lute with the determination to finalize the Terms of Reference that would enable structured and results-oriented negotiations leading to a settlement with a sense of urgency,” said a statement issued by UN spokesman Aleem Siddique.
“The two leaders also decided to announce their readiness to hold a tripartite meeting with the secretary-general after the United Nations General Assembly in order to plan the way forward,” the statement added.
According to reports, Anastasiades made a specific proposal in order to pave the way for a resumption of negotiations.
He also said that Turkey must “show good will by ending its illegal actions and stop encouraging actions that instead of creating a climate of confidence, undermine, or create a climate of distrust or tensions.”
Turkey, he said, must back down from its insistence on maintaining the Treaty of Guarantees on the island as well as its troops there.
Despite the disagreements and differences that were registered between the two sides, Anastasiadis was reportedly pleased with the meeting as there appeared to be a channel of understanding.
Moreover, Akinci reportedly showed a will to continue the process of resuming negotiations.
