European Commission Special Envoy for Cyprus Johannes Hahn says he is reaching out to all possible stakeholders in an attempt to build confidence and trust and pledged to work as a facilitator for a solution.

Speaking to the press following a private meeting he had on Tuesday morning, in Nicosia, with President Nikos Christodoulides, the Envoy said that this is his first visit on the island and will not be the only one, pointing out that his mandate is to be supportive to the UN led process.

“[The] understanding is to work as a facilitator to enable, hopefully a lasting solution, and this is my understanding. This is my commitment. I hope at the end of the day I will be supportive and successful”, he noted.

Hahn arrived yesterday on the island and met with Greek Cypriot negotiator, ambassadors of EU member states and the UN Special Representative Colin Stewart.

Replying to a question how the EU could help the two sides to reconcile the seemingly irreconcilable differences, in order to return to the negotiating table, the Envoy said that all parties have particular interests related to the European Union. “And this is exactly what I tried to figure out in all my meetings. And then let’s go [for] the next step”, he said.

Asked if he is visiting Ankara or having any communication with Turkey’s President Tayyip Erdogan, Hahn said that he will try to build trust and confidence to all relevant players. “And this is what I can say for the moment”, he noted.

Hahn, according to sources, is meeting with UN personal envoy Maria Angela Holguin in Brussels in the beginning of July.

As announced last May, in this capacity, Hahn will report to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and contribute to the settlement process within the United Nations Framework in close cooperation with the UN Secretary-General’s Personal Envoy on Cyprus, María Ángela Holguín. 

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.

UN Secretary General announced that an informal meeting on Cyprus in a broader format will be held at the end of July, following a similar meeting in Geneva, on March 17-18.