President of the Republic of Cyprus, Nikos Christodoulides, said on Monday that he was ‘cautiously optimistic’ following his meeting in Nicosia with the UN Secretary-General’s Personal Envoy, María Ángela Holguín, noting that discussions are now focusing on the substance of the Cyprus issue and that it would be a ‘long summer.’
He also said that he intends to convene the National Council next week.
Speaking to reporters after a meeting of approximately 45 minutes with Holguín, and to a comment by a journalist that the UNSG personal envoy appeared more optimistic than on previous occasions, he said, ‘indeed, it was a very good and very interesting discussion.’
‘Following everything that began after the Secretary-General’s meeting with the President of Turkey and our own meeting in Brussels, we are working towards preparing a meeting in a broader format during which the resumption of negotiations will be announced,’ he said.
‘I am cautiously optimistic,’ he added, noting that he would meet Holguín again later this week.
‘It is important that she will visit Turkey, Greece and Brussels before returning to Cyprus,’ he said, adding that, within this framework, he intends to convene the National Council next week.
‘Our objective is clear. We know where we want to go, we know what we are seeking to achieve, and I hope that this cautious optimism, based on what we discussed today, will be translated into something very concrete and tangible,’ he said.
Asked whether any dates had been discussed regarding the proposed meeting, the President said that he and Holguín had discussed certain possible dates. ‘I cannot disclose them, it would not be appropriate. I was sounded out on several dates. It will be a long summer,’ he said.
Asked whether any specific ideas or framework had been presented as the basis for the process, the President said he did not wish to go into details.
‘We want a result more than anyone else, so I want to be measured in my public statements,’ he said, adding that the objective is to reach a meeting in a broader format whose outcome would be an announcement for the resumption of negotiations.
Asked whether this would take place within the framework of a specific plan, the President said: ‘We are always talking about the substance of the Cyprus issue, let me make that clear – about the chapters of the Cyprus problem. We are not talking about something different or something else. We are discussing the substance, very important and substantive issues, and on that basis, if we reach the desired objective, I repeat, an expanded conference will be convened which will announce the resumption of negotiations.’
Asked whether negotiations would resume from the point they left off at Crans-Montana, he said, ‘that is our objective. We have said it many times, and I repeat it again today.’
In response to a question on whether the Secretary-General would prepare a negotiating document, the President said he did not wish to go into details.
‘It is not a question of the Secretary-General preparing something. You understand that the Secretary-General operates within a specific framework, namely the mandate given by the United Nations Security Council. This effort to sound out the parties began in March with the aim of reaching the desired outcome,’ he said.
Asked whether the aim remained to hold the expanded meeting during the summer, he said, ‘we are ready at any time’, noting that the summer has already begun. ‘As I said earlier, this will be a summer during which we will be here and continue working’, he added.
‘I do not want us to rush. What matters is not whether it takes place in July, August or at the end of June. What matters is that we get there. If we do not get there, then there is no point discussing when it might happen,’ he added, replying to another question.
Asked whether the ideas under discussion would also be presented during Holguín’s contacts in Ankara, the President said that this effort had already been underway since March.
‘The decisive development, if you like, was the Secretary-General’s meeting with the Turkish President and, subsequently, our own meeting in Brussels. The Secretary-General’s contacts with the institutions of the European Union have also contributed to creating momentum,’ he said.
‘Discussions are now specific and focused on substance. They are no longer general and vague conversations. Based on what we discussed today, I want to say that I am cautiously optimistic,’ he added.
Asked whether a joint meeting with the Turkish Cypriot leader had been discussed, the President said it had not but that if such a possibility were to arise, he would be ready.
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.