Papadopoulos and Talat to meet for first time in over 2 years

Cyprus President Tassos Papadopoulos will meet Turkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat on July 3 in the presence of the third member of the Committee on Missing Persons in Cyprus, Christopher Girod and UN Secretary-General’s Special Representative in Cyprus Michael Moller.

This is the first time that the two men will meet since the failed referendum to reunite the island more than two years ago.

The announcement was made by Cypriot Government Spokesman Christodoulos Pashiardis on Tuesday.

However, the two sides are still some way off re-starting negotiations.

Asked if during the framework of the meeting there will be a private meeting between President Papadopoulos and Talat, Pashiardis replied “for the time being, there is no such possibility”.

He added that the meeting will solely discuss the missing persons’ issue and “nothing more”.