Cypriot leaders to attend festive event

President Nicos Anastasiades and Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar will get the chance to have a social encounter during a reception the UN plans to host in December.

The two Cypriot leaders infrequently meet as the peace process has turned frosty, with their last social occasion being seven months ago.

They met during an April event also organised by the UN peacekeeping force in Cyprus (UNFICYP) at the old Nicosia airport.

At that meeting, they presented an Action Plan to ensure women’s equal and meaningful participation in the peace process.

Meanwhile, Greek Cypriot negotiator Menelaos Menelaou and his Turkish Cypriot counterpart Ergun Olgun had on Thursday their first meeting after the visit of senior UN diplomat Miroslav Jenča last week.

According to CNA, they assessed Jenča’s visit, which was recognised as a positive step that highlights the continuation of the UNSG Antonio Guterres’ interest in engaging with the Cyprus problem to find a breakthrough to stalled talks.

The latest round of UN-backed negotiations crashed in July 2017 at the Swiss resort of Crans-Montana, meaning that Anastasiades and Tatar have not held face-to-face Cyprus talks.