The Personal Envoy of the UN Secretary-General for Cyprus, María Ángela Holguín, is meeting today in Nicosia with the President of the Republic, Nikos Christodoulides, and the Turkish Cypriot leader, Tufan Erhrman, with the aim of restarting Cyprus reunification talks.
The meeting with President Christodoulides is scheduled for 10:00 a.m. at the Presidential Palace, while later Holguín will meet with the Turkish Cypriot leader, Tufan Erhrman, at 2:00 p.m.
Holguín arrived in Cyprus on Monday. Later the same day, she met with the negotiators of the two communities on the Cyprus issue, focusing on preparatory work ahead of the separate meetings she will hold with the two leaders on Tuesday, as well as the joint meeting of the leaders with Holguín on January 28, as a follow-up to the meeting they held on December 11, 2025.
Holguín is expected to remain in Cyprus until January 29.
Last week, when asked about the matter, President of the Republic Nikos Christodoulides stated that ‘our desire is for an expanded conference to be convened as soon as possible, which will lead to the announcement of the resumption of substantive talks.’
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 is expected.
María Angela Holguín, the UN Secretary-General’s Personal Envoy on Cyprus, is tasked to engage with the parties, while former European Commissioner Johannes Hahn, designated by the Commission as Special Envoy for Cyprus, is also expected to contribute to the settlement process, in cooperation with Holguín.