The government believes that it is very important for the meeting of the UN Secretary General Ban Ki moon with the President of Cyprus Nicos Anastasiades and the Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci in Davos to take place, according to Government Spokesman Nicos Christodoulides.
This, he pointed out, will provide the opportunity to present the actual state of play in the ongoing negotiations, the areas in which there is progress and the areas with serious disagreements, he said on Friday.
He noted that at the same time the need to find solutions that will not deviate from EU values and principles and from the agreed framework for a Cyprus settlement. “It is very important for the UN Secretary General to listen to all these from the President of the Republic himself,” he added.
The spokesman dismissed criticism from the opposition that the Davos meeting could help upgrade the illegal entity in Cyprus` northern Turkish occupied areas. Akinci`s presence at the meeting would ensure that the messages conveyed by the President will not be interpreted as an attempt to play the blame game, he noted, something which according to Christodoulides, must be avoided in the dialogue.
He also said that he has read press releases by political parties here which consider the President`s meeting with Ban and Akinci as an opportunity to convey to the UN Secretary General the real state of play in the negotiations.
The UN has announced a meeting between UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, President of Cyprus Nikos Anastasiades and Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci on January 21st, on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos.
Asked about a meeting which the President had this morning with left-wing party AKEL`s General Secretary Andros Kyprianou, ahead of the latter`s meeting with the Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Çavuşoğlu in Istanbul on January 23, Christodoulides said that it was very productive, and the President briefed Kyprianou on the discussions at the talks, with a view to send very concrete messages to Turkey. He added that everyone agrees on Turkey`s decisive role in efforts to settle the Cyprus problem.
Asked if the issue of guarantees will be one of the main issues that will be discussed during Kyprianou`s meeting with Çavuşoğlu, he said that it will certainly be discussed.
Anastasiades and Akinci have been engaged since May 2015 in UN-led talks aiming to reunite the island under a federal roof. Cyprus has been divided since 1974 when Turkish troops invaded and occupied 37% of its territory.
CNA/MK/MM/2016
ENDS, CYPRUS NEWS AGENCY