Until now there has not been so much progress, UNSG’s Personal Envoy on Cyprus, Maria Angela Holguin said on Tuesday, noting that without progress it would be very difficult to organise a 5+1 meeting on Cyprus.

In statements after a meeting she held at the Presidential Palace with President of the Republic of Cyprus Nikos Christodoulides, Holguin said that she held a good meeting with him and that later in the afternoon she would meet with the Turkish Cypriot leader.

“We had a good meeting today with Mr Christodoulides. I am trying to push for more progress in the Confidence Building Measures. I am just listening to Mr Christodoulides. I am going to see Mr Erhruman this afternoon” she said.

She expressed hope that there would be progress on the Confidence Building Measures (CBMs).

“I hope there is progress, until now there is not so much progress” she noted.

Referring to the joint meeting she convened for Wednesday with both leaders, she said that “tomorrow what I am going to do is  that we can talk about methodology, the four points of Erhurman put on the table some months ago, this is the issue for tomorrow. And I hope there is progress, if not it is very difficult to organise a meeting 5+1 without progress.”

Asked if it is still possible for a 5+1 meeting next month, she replied “it depends on them, on the progress of the two leaders” over the CBMs.

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 that was expected to take place before the end of 2025, is yet to be announced.

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.