Government Spokesman Konstantinos Letymbiotis said on Wednesday that the document recording the convergences on the Cyprus issue should be given to all parties at this stage, before the resumption of negotiations.
Speaking after the conclusion of the National Council meeting, the top advisory body to the President on the handling of the Cyprus issue, the Spokesman also said that the Greek Cypriot side expressed its position in a positive and specific manner on several of the seven CBM raised by Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhrman. He reiterated that the compromise proposal of the United Nations Secretary General on the crossing points has not been accepted by the other side.
Letymbiotis said that the President of the Republic briefed the political leadership on the developments since the previous session of the National Council on 3 August as well as on his meetings with the Turkish Cypriot leader on 26 August, 9 and 19 September, with the Personal Envoy of the UN Secretary-General Maria Angela Holguin on 22 September in New York and with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.
The focus, he added, was on the 19 proposals submitted by the President of the Republic both on Confidence Building Measures (CBM) and on the methodology and essence of the Cyprus problem.
Replying to questions, Letymbiotis referred to the recording of the convergences, clarifying that the position of the Greek Cypriot side remains that the relevant document should be given to the parties before the resumption of negotiations.
‘We, from the very beginning – and this was the arrangement and the approach also during the visit of the UNSG – (stated) that with the completion of the recording of the convergences, that this document be given to all parties so that there would be a common view regarding the convergences that have been achieved, precisely to assist the process towards the resumption of negotiations and not with the resumption of negotiations,’ he said.
He added that this position has been repeatedly conveyed and that the Greek Cypriot negotiator, Menelaos Menelaou, brought it back after the last briefing from Holguin.
‘We believe that this record of the convergences – on which we had requested an update on, and we had been informed that it is at an advanced stage – should be given at this stage to all parties, precisely so that this process contributes to the effort of the United Nations Secretary General for the resumption,’ he said.
Referring to the seven CBM raised by the Turkish Cypriot leader, the Government Spokesman referred to the positions of the Greek Cypriot side, noting that for each one of them there have been public and specific positions submitted.
Regarding the issue of demining, Letymbiotis recalled that the Greek Cypriot side has submitted a specific proposal since 2025, which concerns the areas that the United Nations has listed, which, remains to this day without acceptance or discussion by the other side.
As regards the Technical Committee on natural disasters, the Government Spokesman noted that the issue was discussed during the joint meeting of the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot negotiators with the UN Deputy Secretary-General Rosemary DiCarlo and the UN Secretary-General’s Personal Envoy Maria Angela Holguin in New York. The Greek Cypriot side has accepted the Committee’s recommendation, while the other side has expressed reservations, he continued.
On the issue of sports, Letymbiotis referred to an existing institutionalized framework of cooperation, which was signed in 2013 between FIFA, UEFA, the Cyprus Football Federation and the corresponding Turkish Cypriot federation.
‘A friendly match has already taken place on September 19, a new one is planned in the occupied territories in October,’ he said.
Regarding the crossing points, the Government Spokesman said that the Greek Cypriot side has submitted a series of proposals, which it presented as a token of its constructive attitude. He clarified that the Greek Cypriot side has accepted the UN Secretary General’s compromise proposal on the crossing points, while the other side has not accepted it. “There are certainly many proposals that we have submitted for the crossing points, demonstrating our own constructive stance and approach,” he noted.
As regards the issue of citizenships, Letymbiotis reiterated the Government’s position that this specific issue cannot be treated as a CBM as it is linked to provisions of the legislation and to the status of the Republic of Cyprus as a member state of the European Union.
He stressed that the relevant applications are examined based on the established criteria and legislation, and noted that the examination of applications has restarted after President Nikos Christodoulides assumed the Presidency.
We have publicly spoken about each of these 7 points, he said, adding that our positions are public, recorded and consistent.
Letymbiotis also noted that the President of the Republic has presented “a total of 19 proposals, 19 points, which can be discussed if we really want to see progress”.
The Spokesman referred to the upcoming visit of the UN Secretary-General’s personal envoy for Cyprus, Maria Angela Holguin, to Cyprus in October, in preparation for the informal expanded conference that Antonio Guterres is seeking to convene.
During the National Council meeting, he said, there was a thorough exchange of views on the next steps of the Secretary General’s initiative and on how the effort can be strengthened in view of Holguin’s arrival.
Letymbiotis stressed that the Greek Cypriot side has submitted many proposals and that the recent ones concern all three fields in which the UN Secretary General seeks to make progress.
“Our approach and the approach of the UN Secretary General himself, as he himself stated during his visit to Cyprus and in the meetings we had, is that when there are challenges, the solution is not less dialogue. The solution is more dialogue,” he pointed out.
The Spokesman added that the discussion should continue, without overlooking Turkey’s role and its stance towards the UN Secretary General’s effort to convene an expanded conference.
‘The UNSG himself remains committed to this effort. The UNSG himself maintains the belief that convening such an expanded meeting is feasible in the near future. However, a necessary component, a necessary condition is that there is political will,’ he underlined.
He noted that the Greek Cypriot side cannot determine how difficult the path will be, but can continue to submit proposals that will facilitate the effort, while calling on the other side to demonstrate the same constructive attitude.
Asked about the possibility that there will be no progress by the end of Guterres’ term, Letymbiotis stressed that the negotiating acquis will not be lost.
“The negotiating acquis cannot and will not be lost,” he said, adding that this is also included in the proposals of the Turkish Cypriot leader.
The Spokesman said that the terms of the mandate of the UN Secretary General are based on the UNSC resolutions, which, “clearly and repeatedly define, specify, describe and record the agreed framework.”
He recalled that the UN Secretary General has the personal goal to achieve substantive progress on the Cyprus issue by the end of his term.
“We still have time until the end of the term of the Secretary-General of the United Nations”, he said.
He stressed that “we will never compromise with the faits accomplis” and never allow, the Turkish intransigence to lead us to abandon the effort to achieve a solution to the Cyprus problem.
Letymbiotis reiterated that progress in the negotiation requires the participation of both sides, noting that the Republic of Cyprus will continue its initiatives to assist the efforts of the UN Secretary-General.
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.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, whose term nears its end, announced he would convene another meeting in broader format, after adequate preparation, but gave no timeline. He secured to that end the consensus of both sides and of the guarantor powers. María Angela Holguín, Guterres’ Personal Envoy on Cyprus, is tasked to engage with the parties. Executive Vice-President Raffaele Fitto acts as the European Commission’s Special Representative for Cyprus.