The European Union has the most decisive role in the new effort by the Secretary-General of the United Nations to restart negotiations aimed at finding a sustainable and functional solution to the Cyprus issue, fully compatible with the principles, values, and laws of the EU, President Nikos Christodoulides said on Thursday.
President Christodoulides made the brief statement on platform “X” following his meeting with European Council President António Costa in Brussels on Thursday afternoon, just hours before the start of the two-day EU Summit of the 27 Member States’ leaders.
‘The widely acknowledged success of the Cypriot Presidency of the Council of the European Union in every respect with a specific Plan, Strategy, Vision, and deliverables of significant added value for further European integration demonstrates among many other things, our commitment to the European project and to a Europe that is more autonomous, stronger, and more competitive,’ the President said in a broader assessment ahead of the conclusion of Cyprus’s Presidency of the Council of the EU at the end of June.
‘Within this framework, the European Union has the most decisive role in the new effort by the Secretary-General of the United Nations to restart negotiations aimed at finding a sustainable and functional solution to the Cyprus issue, fully compatible with the principles, values, and laws of the European Union,’ he added.
From the European Council President’s side, it was confirmed that the Cyprus issue was discussed during the bilateral meeting. However, no further details were provided by Costa’s office regarding the substance or direction of the discussion.
Representing Cyprus at the meeting were Foreign Minister Constantinos Kombos, Deputy Minister for European Affairs Marilena Raouna, and Cyprus’s Permanent Representative to the EU, Christina Rafti.
Representing the European Council were Council Secretary-General Thérèse Blanchet and Anna-Maria Boura, President Costa’s adviser on foreign affairs.
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 due to Turkish intransigence. The latest round of negotiations, in July 2017 at the Swiss resort of Crans-Montana ended inconclusively.
In 2025 the Secretary-General hosted two informal meetings on Cyprus, in March in Geneva and in July in New York, while a tripartite meeting with the Cyprus leaders was also held in late September, at the end of the UN General Assembly High Level Week. An informal meeting in broader format that was expected to take place before the end of 2025, is yet to be announced. María Angela Holguín, the UN Secretary-General’s Personal Envoy on Cyprus, is tasked to engage with the parties.