President Nicos Anastasiades will not attend a reception being hosted tonight by the UN special representative Elizabeth Spehar tonight as initially announced, because of a heavy programme, the presidency has announced.
Anastasiades was due to attend the end of the year reception at the Ledra Palace in Nicosia being hosted by Spehar.
Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci was also due to attend. But according to reports from Turkish Cypriot media he will not be attending either because of a change in his programme.
The Cyprus News Agency said on Monday that apart from Anastasiades and Akinci, politicians and other personalities from both communities of Cyprus as well as foreign diplomats serving on the island have been invited.
Anastasiades and Akinci had on November 25 a joint informal meeting with the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in Berlin.
In a statement after the meeting, Guterres said that he committed to explore with Anastasiades, Akinci and the guarantor powers the possibility to convene an informal five party meeting on Cyprus “at an appropriate stage”
Guterres also noted that the leaders of Cyprus affirmed their commitment to the Joint Declaration of 11 February 2014, the prior convergences, and the six point framework he presented on June 30, 2017 “with a view to achieve a strategic agreement paving the way forward for a comprehensive settlement.”
Cyprus has been divided since 1974, when Turkey invaded and occupied its northern third. Repeated rounds of UN-led peace talks have so far failed to yield results. The latest round of negotiations, in July 2017 at the Swiss resort of Crans-Montana ended inconclusively.
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https://in-cyprus.com/anastasiades-and-akinci-to-attend-un-end-of-the-year-reception-on-tuesday/
