US urge all parties in Cyprus to resume peace talks

Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot negotiators are making important progress and the US urge all parties to make the most of the current window of opportunity and to restart comprehensive talks, Jennifer Psaki, Spokesperson of the US State Department has said.

Psaki was speaking to the press on Monday following a meeting US Secretary of State John Kerry had with the Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, who is visiting the United States.

Psaki said that Kerry and Davutoglu talked about a range of issues including the Cyprus problem and they both expressed their commitment to the issue.

“There’s no change to our policy to announce, but it was one of the issues discussed. Turkey plays, as I said, a very large role in so many ways”, Psaki pointed out.

She went on to say that for months now, “we have been talking about Cyprus and we have been talking about Nagorno-Karabakh and quietly, we have been trying to work ways that our ambassadors, who are front and center in this – in these initiatives, are continuing that process”.

“Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot negotiators are making important progress, and we urge all parties to make the most of the current window of opportunity and to restart comprehensive talks”, the Department of State Spokesperson also said.

Cyprus has been divided since 1974 when Turkey invaded and occupied its northern third.

The latest round of UN-backed direct talks between the Greek Cypriots and the Turkish Cypriots began in 2008 and came to a halt in 2012 when Cyprus assumed the Presidency of the Council of the EU.

A new round of talks is expected to start in the coming months. The negotiators of the two communities have been meeting with the UN with the aim to agree on a joint declaration before the negotiations begin.