UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has said that after the October elections in the breakaway north of the divided island he will re-start peace talks aiming to reunite Cyprus.
“As soon as they (elections) take place it’s my intention to convene again the five key partners – the guarantors and the two communities,” Guterres said on Wednesday during a press conference following the start of the seventy-fifth session of the United Nations General Assembly.
“And also to restart the dialogue with the leaders of the two communities, in the follow up of the dinner that I have been done in Berlin, a few months ago,” he added.
Guterres also stressed the importance of developing confidence building measures (CBMs) and avoiding any unilateral actions that could undermine the future success of negotiations on the Cyprus problem.
He is totally committed to revitalising the political process for a Cyprus settlement, he added.
He went on to say that “it is my deep belief that in between it is very important to develop confidence building measures and to avoid any unilateral actions that could undermine the future success of these negotiations.
“And I am totally committed, as soon as the opportunity is created – as I said there is a consensus to wait for the elections in the Northern Cyprus – I am totally committed to revitalise the political process.”
Cyprus has been divided since the 1974 Turkish invasion. The latest UN backed round of talks took place in the Swiss resort of Crans Montana but failed to yield any results.
(CNA)
