UN: Cyprus rivals no nearer to reviving stalled UN talks

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02:19

Rival Cypriot leaders failed Friday to make progress in reviving UN-backed peace talks that collapsed more than two years ago, but agreed to meet UN chief Antonio Guterres later this year.

"The two leaders... decided to announce their readiness to hold a tripartite meeting with the secretary-general after the United Nations General Assembly (in September) in order to plan the way forward," a UN statement said.

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Cyprus has been divided into the Greek and Turkish Cypriot communities since 1974 after Turkish troops mounted a major military action in response to a coup by the military rulers of Greece at the time, marking the start of one of the world's longest and most intractable problems.

Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades and Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci held an informal three-hour meeting on Friday in the UN compound in the buffer zone which divides the capital Nicosia.

Secretary-General of the United Nations (UN) Antonio Guterres (C) makes a statement with Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci (L) and Greek Cypriot leader Nicos Anastasiades (R) at a press conference during the fourth day of Cyprus talks at United Nations Office in Geneva, Switzerland, January 12, 2017. /VCG Photo

The two leaders had a "sincere and constructive exchange of views," the UN said, but failed to make any breakthrough in reviving talks on ending the island's four-and-a-half-decade division.

The new effort to revive peace negotiations, which collapsed in Switzerland in July 2017, was overshadowed by escalating tensions between the two sides over oil and gas exploration in the waters off the eastern Mediterranean island.

The two leaders agreed to continue engaging in the efforts undertaken by UN envoy Jane Holl Lute that "would enable structured and results-oriented negotiations leading to a settlement with a sense of urgency," the UN said.

The statement marked little progress since the leaders' last informal meeting in February with no mention of the dispute over offshore energy wealth.

(With inputs from AFP)

(Cover: Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades (L) and Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci (R) speak with Elizabeth Spehar, UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Head of UNFICYP Mission, during a meeting in the buffer zone of Nicosia airport, Cyprus, August 9, 2019. /Reuters Photo)