Date of Informal Five-Party Cyprus Meeting Unclear amid Ankara’s Silence

According to the paper, the United Nations had proposed holding the talks in New York on 24–25 July. Government Spokesperson Konstantinos Letymbiotis said yesterday that all participants except Turkey had given a positive response and that UN officials were exploring alternative dates in coordination with the parties.

Letymbiotis noted that intensive preparatory work is under way for the prospective July gathering, which is intended to focus on the substance of the Cyprus issue. He stressed that success would require “good-faith negotiations” conducted on the basis of UN resolutions, international law and the EU acquis.

UN Secretary-General’s Personal Envoy María Ángela Holguín is preparing to visit Brussels and London next week for contacts with stakeholders before returning to the island for a new round of meetings. EU sources said Holguín is scheduled to meet the European Commission’s Cyprus Envoy, Johannes Hahn, marking their first encounter on the dossier. Holguín has already visited Ankara and Athens.

Letymbiotis recalled President Nikos Christodoulides’s efforts since taking office to secure a more active EU role in restarting negotiations, culminating in Hahn’s appointment. He also underlined the importance of Christodoulides’s recent meeting with UN Special Representative Colin Stewart, who is due to brief the Security Council on 14 July.

Asked about Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar’s decision not to meet Hahn, Letymbiotis said such an exchange “could only have been positive” and reiterated the Greek Cypriot side’s commitment to continuous dialogue and initiatives.