Minister of Foreign Affairs, Constantinos Kombos, had a “productive first exchange of views” with the new UNSG Special Representative in Cyprus and Head of UNFICYP, Khassim Diagne, on Monday, according to a post be the Foreign Ministry on X.

The Ministry noted that Kombos reaffirmed Cyprus’ commitment to the UN-agreed framework for a solution to the Cyprus issue and expressed full support to UNFICYP for the implementation of its mandate.

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 to take place in the coming months.

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.

UNFICYP, comprising over 800 military personnel from about seven troop contributing countries, arrived in Cyprus in March 1964 after inter-communal fighting broke out. The mandate of the force is renewed every six months by the Security Council. UNFICYP’s mandate is to contribute to the restoration of normal conditions and entails the facilitation of an increasingly wide range of civilian activities.