President of the Republic Nikos Christodoulides conveyed to the UN Secretary-General’s Special Representative in Cyprus and Head of UNFICYP, Khassim Diagne, the government’s increasingly strong desire to see no violations or attempted violations of the status quo in the buffer zone by the Turkish Cypriot side, Government Spokesman Konstantinos Letymbiotis said on Monday.
Speaking to journalists at the Presidential Palace, Letymbiotis said President Christodoulides and Diagne exchanged views on the next steps in ongoing efforts to resume negotiations on the Cyprus problem, ahead of the visit of the UN Secretary-General’s Personal Envoy, Maria Angela Holguin.
He noted that the President was scheduled to meet Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhurman on Tuesday morning under UN auspices, while a meeting with Holguin was scheduled for Friday. A joint meeting involving the two leaders and the UN envoy had also been arranged.
Against the backdrop of these upcoming meetings and the ongoing good offices of the UN Secretary-General and the work of UNFICYP in Cyprus, President Christodoulides conveyed to Diagne the government’s increasingly strong desire to prevent violations or attempted violations of the status quo in the buffer zone by the Turkish Cypriot side, Letymbiotis said.
He added that the government continued to expect the United Nations to act with objectivity and a measured approach, while ensuring that the terms of its mandate in Cyprus were upheld.
Violations in the area of Pyla and other locations across the UN controlled buffer zone are frequent, with the latest incident, in April 2026, involving the deployment of military vehicles and personnel from the Turkish-occupied areas, aimed at blocking veterinary checks. This prompted the UN to stress that unauthorised entry, presence or activity within the buffer zone constitutes a violation of the UN Mission’s mandate.
Further violations occurred at times in the area of Agios Dometios, in Nicosia, and other sites in and around the buffer zone, involving Turkish occupation troops. Guterres reiterated the importance of the parties refraining from taking unilateral actions that could raise tensions and compromise a return to talks.
Cyprus has been divided since the 1974 illegal Turkish invasion. Numerous peace talks under the UN aegis with the aim to reunite the island under a federal roof failed to yield results. The latest round of talks took place in the summer of 2017 in the Swiss resort of Crans Montana.