The UN Secretary-General has made it clear that he will not undertake any initiative that falls outside the framework of the United Nations Charter, President of the Republic Nikos Christodoulides said on Monday.
Speaking upon arrival at the graduation ceremony of doctoral students at the Cyprus University of Technology in Limassol, and asked to comment on reports regarding statements by Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan on a two-state solution during his meeting with the UN Secretary-General’s Personal Envoy Maria Angela Holguin, President Christodoulides said he does not dismiss or underestimate Mr Fidan’s statements, nor the possible reasons behind them.
“I have exchanged a number of messages with the Personal Envoy and have been briefed on what was discussed in the meeting with Mr Fidan, which I will not make public, as you can understand, ” he said.
"Regarding Mr Fidan’s statements, I want to make something clear. The UN Secretary-General has repeatedly stated, including to the Turkish President and later in Brussels during our meetings with EU leaders, that he will not take any initiative outside the framework of the UN Charter, especially at a time when the Charter, the post-1945 international system and international law itself are being challenged,” he said.
“I do not underestimate or downplay Mr Fidan’s statements or the reasons they may have been made. What he said publicly matters, and I repeat, I do not underestimate or downplay it,” he said.
“From that point on,” he continued, “the UN initiative is moving in a specific direction set by the Secretary-General and we continue this effort.”
He reiterated that, “in the end, everyone will be judged by their positions and by the final outcome.”
Asked whether the Turkish Foreign Minister may have made those statements for public consumption, President Christodoulides said, “I do not know whether they were made for public consumption or not. I do not underestimate them, nor do I downplay them.”
Source: CNA
