{"id":253079,"date":"2024-01-31T09:13:22","date_gmt":"2024-01-31T01:13:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.namnewsnetwork.org\/?p=253079"},"modified":"2024-01-31T09:13:22","modified_gmt":"2024-01-31T01:13:22","slug":"new-un-envoy-tests-waters-for-fresh-talks-on-ending-cyprus-divide","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/namnewsnetwork.org\/?p=253079","title":{"rendered":"New UN envoy tests waters for fresh talks on ending Cyprus divide"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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\u00a0 NICOSIA, Jan 31 (NNN-AGENCIES) — New United Nations Cyprus envoy Maria\u00a0Angela Holguin Cuellar began a mission to test the waters for a fresh\u00a0round of talks on ending the Mediterranean island’s five decades of division.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Holguin held a first meeting with Greek Cypriot leader Nikos Christodoulides,\u00a0who is also the island’s internationally recognised president, before\u00a0crossing the UN-patrolled ceasefire line to meet Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin\u00a0Tater.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“I come from a country that lived 50 years of conflict and was part of that\u00a0team that reached a peace agreement,” the Colombian diplomat told reporters\u00a0after meeting Christodoulides.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“I think I can collaborate and do all my best for a good result for Cyprus…\u00a0and push again,” she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Following her recent appointment by UN chief Antonio Guterres, Holguin is\u00a0tasked with gauging whether there is sufficient common ground for the world\u00a0body to relaunch Cyprus reunification talks after a seven-year hiatus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The European Union member state has been divided since 1974 when Turkish\u00a0forces occupied the island’s northern third in response to a military coup\u00a0sponsored by the junta then in power in Athens seeking to annex the island to\u00a0
Greece.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The breakaway Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, which Turkish Cypriot\u00a0leaders proclaimed in 1983, is recognised only by Ankara.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Efforts to reunify the island have been at a standstill since the last round\u00a0of UN-backed talks collapsed in 2017.
Diplomats largely blamed the Greek Cypriot side for the talks’ collapse,\u00a0noting that the concessions on the table from the Turkish side were an\u00a0improvement on all previous reunification plans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But the breakdown has prompted a tougher line from the Turkish Cypriots, who\u00a0have demanded that with no reunification deal in sight, the international\u00a0community accept a two-state solution.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Greek Cypriots say that is now the main stumbling block to relaunching\u00a0talks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cyprus government spokesman Konstantinos Letymbiotis said there was “no time\u00a0frame” for the new UN bid but the Greek Cypriot side had “reaffirmed our\u00a0commitment to engage in this new period”.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Of course, we believe that, if there is the same political will on the other\u00a0side, the resumption of negotiations can occur very soon,” he added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Over the next few days, Holguin is also scheduled to meet other officials and\u00a0civil society groups to test the waters for a new reunification push.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Letymbiotis said the Greek Cypriot leader stood ready to hold another meeting\u00a0with the envoy before she leaves, either alone or alongside his Turkish\u00a0Cypriot counterpart.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ahead of Holguin’s visit, Christodoulides promised a package of new measures\u00a0benefiting Turkish Cypriots Friday, in what he said was a bid to build trust\u00a0between the two communities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It includes pledges to fast-track Turkish Cypriot applications for Cyprus\u00a0citizenship, offer pensions to widows, expand trade and boost access to\u00a0Muslim places of worship.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The talks that collapsed in 2017 were widely billed as the last chance for a\u00a0Cyprus settlement so any new reunification push is likely be a very tall\u00a0order.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“The prospects of a solution that everyone can accept are gradually fading,”\u00a0the UN chief said in his latest report on Cyprus where the world body has had\u00a0peacekeepers deployed since 1964. — NNN-AGENCIES<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u00a0 NICOSIA, Jan 31 (NNN-AGENCIES) — New United Nations Cyprus envoy Maria\u00a0Angela Holguin Cuellar began a mission to test the waters for a fresh\u00a0round of talks on ending the Mediterranean island’s five decades of division. Holguin held a first meeting with Greek Cypriot leader Nikos Christodoulides,\u00a0who is also the island’s internationally recognised president, before\u00a0crossing the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":253080,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[209],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/namnewsnetwork.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/253079"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/namnewsnetwork.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/namnewsnetwork.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/namnewsnetwork.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/namnewsnetwork.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=253079"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/namnewsnetwork.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/253079\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":253081,"href":"http:\/\/namnewsnetwork.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/253079\/revisions\/253081"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/namnewsnetwork.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/253080"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/namnewsnetwork.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=253079"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/namnewsnetwork.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=253079"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/namnewsnetwork.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=253079"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}