President Nikos Christodoulides and Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhürman concluded their meeting on Wednesday after approximately 70 minutes of talks, with no statement expected from the United Nations.
The meeting took place at the UN Good Offices premises in the area of the former Nicosia airport and forms part of the latest round of contacts aimed at maintaining momentum on the Cyprus issue and preparing the ground for future discussions under UN auspices.
No announcements after meeting
The meeting ended shortly before noon.
According to information obtained by Politis, the United Nations is not expected to issue a communiqué following the talks.
Focus on negotiations and confidence-building measures
The discussions come amid ongoing efforts to explore the prospects for the resumption of substantive negotiations on the Cyprus problem.
Among the issues on the agenda were possible negotiating methodologies and the confidence-building measures requested by UN Secretary-General António Guterres during his visit to Cyprus.
Christodoulides reiterates call for political will
The meeting followed public remarks by Christodoulides earlier in the day, when he expressed optimism about the prospects for progress despite existing challenges.
Responding to comments by Erhürman regarding the difficulties created by a lack of trust between the two communities, the President said meaningful progress remained possible if there was genuine political will.
"If there is political will, yes, we can make history," he said.
Status quo harms both communities, says President
Christodoulides also argued that maintaining the current situation does not serve the interests of either community.
"If the current state of affairs remains, those who lose are Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots. It is the Cypriot people who lose," he said.
The President added that he had expected a more positive message from Erhürman, but stressed that he remains committed to efforts aimed at overcoming the current status quo and achieving the reunification of Cyprus.
He reiterated that progress will depend largely on the political will demonstrated by both sides.
