Mehmet Dana, special representative of the Turkish Cypriot leader, held a series of meetings in New York on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, discussing the latest developments surrounding the Cyprus issue.
Among those Dana met were UN Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs Rosemary DiCarlo, Greek Cypriot negotiator Menelaos Menelaou and UN Secretary-General’s Personal Envoy María Ángela Holguín.
Meetings with diplomats
According to a written statement reported in the north, Dana also met Pakistan’s Permanent Representative to the UN Asim Iftikhar Ahmad.
He held separate meetings with the deputy permanent representatives of Switzerland, Oliver Hoehne; Russia, Alexander Repkin; and France, Jay Dharmadhikari.
“During these meetings, the latest developments on the Cyprus issue were discussed and views were exchanged,” the statement said.
Republic of Cyprus sends letter to UN missions
Meanwhile, Turkish Cypriot newspaper Kıbrıs led its front page with a report headlined “Diplomatic scandal”, claiming that the Greek Cypriot side had attempted to prevent Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhürman’s contacts in New York.
According to the report, the Republic of Cyprus’ Permanent Representative to the United Nations sent a letter to all Permanent Representations and permanent observer missions at the UN, calling on them to avoid contact with representatives of the breakaway administration in the north.
The letter cited relevant UN Security Council resolutions and urged representatives of diplomatic missions to refrain from meetings aimed at what it described as the promotion of “secessionist policies”.
“Under the light of the above, and based on information that representatives of the secessionist entity are abusing the presence of high-level officials in New York to propagate their secessionist policies by requesting meetings, the Permanent Mission of Cyprus calls on Permanent Missions and Permanent Observer Missions to refrain from any contact or meetings with these persons in accordance with the relevant UN Security Council resolutions,” the letter said.
Turkish Cypriot newspaper criticises move
Kıbrıs claimed that the letter represented a new attempt by what it called the “Greek Cypriot administration”, referring to the Republic of Cyprus, to restrict the international visibility and diplomatic contacts of the Turkish Cypriot side during UN General Assembly week.
The newspaper also contrasted the move with calls from the Greek Cypriot side for the resumption of negotiations and dialogue on the Cyprus issue.
Source: CNA
