The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Cyprus welcomes the UNSG’s expressed commitment to continue his efforts to resume the negotiation process for Cyprus, with the aim of achieving a viable and comprehensive solution, on the basis of the agreed framework and the relevant UN Security Council Resolutions. However, it expresses its disappointment with the longstanding tendency of the UN to maintain an equidistant approach, resulting to the inaccurate and selective depiction of the realities on the ground as these are caused by the Turkish occupation and the methodology followed by the occupying forces, undermining the effort for the creation of a climate of trust.
The positions were outlined in a press release with regard to the UN Secretary-General’s Mission of Good Offices and UNFICYP Reports to the UN Security Council.
It said that the ‘Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Cyprus welcomes the Secretary-General’s expressed commitment to continue his efforts to resume the negotiation process, with the aim of achieving a viable and comprehensive solution, on the basis of the agreed framework and the relevant UN Security Council Resolutions. We share the Secretary-General’s view that the confidence building measures cannot replace the negotiation process. We look forward to the resumption of the negotiations the soonest, aiming to achieve an enduring, comprehensive and just settlement of the Cyprus issue, based on a bicommunal bizonal federation with political equality, as set out in the relevant UN Security Council Resolutions’.
With regard to the Report on UNFICYP, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Cyprus shares the concern of the ‘Secretary-General regarding the recorded ongoing violations by the occupying army in the buffer zone, especially in the areas of Pyla, Varosha and Strovilia’ adding ‘we unequivocally condemn the illegal actions of the Turkish occupying army, including the harassment of Cypriot citizens and the restrictions it tries to impose on UNFICYP’s movements and its ability to implement its mandate’.
Noting the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Cyprus respects and attaches great importance to UNFICYP’s role in Cyprus, based on its mandate, as set out by UN Security Council Resolution 186(1984), it said it expects UNFICYP to undertake all necessary measures for the immediate reversal of the recorded violations and the safeguarding of normal living conditions.
At the same time, however, ‘the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Cyprus expresses its disappointment with the longstanding tendency of the UN to maintain an equidistant approach, resulting to the inaccurate and selective depiction of the realities on the ground as these are caused by the Turkish occupation and the methodology followed by the occupying forces, undermining the effort for the creation of a climate of trust’.
Regarding the humanitarian mandate of the Peacekeeping Force, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Cyprus wishes to recall the need for the Report to clearly record and highlight Trkiye’s responsibilities both in relation to the living conditions of the enclaved, as well as, on the issue of missing persons.
Concluding, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Cyprus ‘reaffirms its commitment to continued cooperation and close coordination with UNFICYP for the effective implementation of its mandate, and with the ultimate goal of a just and viable solution to the Cyprus issue, in accordance with the relevant UN Security Council Resolutions’.
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.
After informal meetings in 2025, followed by a hiatus of several months, deliberations are underway for a new meeting in broader format to be held, as the term of the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres nears its end. 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, succeeding EU special envoy Johannes Hahn.