Cypriot leaders hold second UN-sponsored meeting

NICOSIA

Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhürman and Greek Cypriot leader Nikos Christodoulides met for the second time under U.N.-sponsored talks on Dec. 11, signaling a step toward reviving long-stalled negotiations on the divided island.

Before the meeting, the leaders visited the Committee on Missing Persons, a U.N. body tasked with locating and identifying over 2,000 individuals who disappeared during the 1963-64 violence and Türkiye’s 1974 military operation.

The session, facilitated by the personal envoy of U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, Maria Angela Holguin Cuellar, was followed by an informal reception hosted by the U.N. chief's special representative on the island, Khassim Diagne.

Erhürman and Christodoulides first met on Nov. 20 after the former won the Turkish Cypriot presidency in October on a pledge to restart negotiations.

Both leaders indicated readiness to meet directly with Guterres to discuss prospects for renewing peace talks. Erhürman said the leaders agreed to maintain close contact to “create the right atmosphere” for future discussions.

He also presented a 10-point package addressing practical issues facing both communities, including citizenship matters for children of mixed marriages and the opening of new crossing points.

While Ankara supports a two-state solution for Cyprus, diverging from Erhürman’s stated position, the new Turkish Cypriot leader expressed willingness to cooperate with Türkiye.

The Cyprus dispute has persisted for decades, despite multiple U.N.-led initiatives. The island’s north is recognized only by Ankara, and a 2004 U.N. reunification plan was rejected by Greek Cypriot voters. Negotiations collapsed in 2017 and have not since resumed.