It is our and highest priority to work for the liberation and reunification of our homeland, the President of the Republic, Nikos Christodoulides, said on Saturday during the 45th anti-occupation event of the people of Morphou, adding that ‘for us, there can be no solution without the return of Morphou.’
‘Our efforts to resolve the Cyprus problem are not limited to slogans and wishful thinking. These are very specific initiatives that we began immediately after taking office,’ he noted, adding that ‘in these two and a half years, we have been making steps methodically, with dedication and with the deepest conviction that, despite the difficulties and problems, the solution to the Cyprus problem, yes, 51 years later, is an absolutely achievable goal’.
This optimism, he said, is based on certain developments, which are the decision of the UN Secretary-General to proceed with the appointment of his personal envoy, the two multilateral meetings on Cyprus convened within a year, the recent trilateral meeting in New York, and the UN Secretary-General’s commitment to convene a new multilateral meeting immediately after the election of a Turkish Cypriot leader.
‘All these are developments that were not a given in 2023. And I say all this to highlight the obstacles, difficulties, and problems we had to face,’ he stressed, while assuring that “we will make the most of even the slightest opportunity for negotiation and do everything humanly possible to resume negotiations, with the aim of finding a sustainable and workable solution within the agreed framework that respects the principles and values of the European Union.”
“It is important that, beyond the commitment and political will of the United Nations Secretary-General in this great effort, I am also encouraged by the fact that our efforts to resolve the Cyprus issue are supported by the European Union, at the level of states, leaders, and institutions,” he noted.
“The mobilization of the European Union, the utilization of the broader European framework, the reactivation of international interest, maintaining open channels with the United Nations, and our pursuit of direct communication with Turkey, which has yielded some results, are steps in the strategy we have followed since the first day I took office,” said the President of the Republic.
“Although we are not – I am not trying to sugarcoat the situation – where we want to be, and although I do not downplay or underestimate the difficulties and challenges, I believe that we are on a path that can lead us to the goal of resuming negotiations,’ he continued.
‘Whoever the leader of the Turkish Cypriots may be, I am ready to meet with him immediately, I am ready to negotiate, I am ready to do whatever it takes to make this great effort bear fruit, allowing us to remove once and for all the barbed wire that keeps our homeland divided,’ he stressed.
‘My only ambition is the withdrawal of the occupying army, the transformation of the Republic of Cyprus into a bi-zonal, bi-communal state, with a single sovereignty, a single citizenship and an international personality that will guarantee the fundamental rights of all its legal residents,” he said, adding that ‘for us, there can be no solution without the return of Morphou.’
Referring to Cyprus’ upcoming Presidency of the Council of the European Union in the first half of 2026, President Christodoulides said that ‘this is a very important milestone for our country, a national mission, especially for a small EU member state, which I am confident we will carry out successfully.’
“The upcoming Presidency of the Council of the European Union by the Republic of Cyprus is also an important opportunity for us to highlight the active and substantial role of our country, which, 65 years after its independence, is present in the major challenges, with confidence and credibility, with a role and a voice. A responsible country that is part of the solution to the problems of the region and not part of the problems,” he stressed.
“The Presidency of the Council will also give us the opportunity to show thousands of visitors, government officials, heads of state and government, the barbed wire fence of the occupation. They will see up close the flag that defiles Pentadaktylos and reminds us of our obligation to work for the liberation and reunification of our homeland. To hand it over united, undivided, safe, and peaceful. This is our supreme duty and our highest priority,” he concluded.
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. The latest round of negotiations, in July 2017 at the Swiss resort of Crans-Montana ended inconclusively.