UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will kick off the ongoing Cyprus talks in Switzerland on 7th November.
On Friday, UN Special Envoy on Cyprus, Espen Barth Eide issued a statement saying that Ban will launch the talks, which will focus, in the main, on territory.
“The Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akıncı, and the Greek Cypriot leader Nicos Anastasiades, decided earlier this week to continue their intensive negotiations in Mont Pèlerin from 7 to 11 November,” said the statement.
“The meeting will be held under the auspices of the United Nations and with the generous support of the Government of Switzerland,” it added.
Eide noted that the talks will “concentrate on the chapter of territory, as well as all other outstanding issues interdependently”.
“It is the first time that the two leaders are negotiating the issue of territory directly, marking a critical juncture in the current process,” said Eide.
“It is important to recognise the particular sensitivity of this chapter for both sides, which is a key reason why the leaders have agreed to hold the talks outside of Cyprus, and why they want to conduct them interdependently with other relevant chapters,” he added.
Both community leaders have expressed the hope that the meeting in Switzerland will pave the way for the last phase of the talks and fulfil their commitment to do their utmost to reach a settlement within 2016.
Cyprus Weekly
