Cyprus: Guterres calls for renewed trust and a new meeting on the way forward

The United Nations Secretary-General said on Wednesday that he plans to convene fresh talks on Cyprus to resolve the decades-long division on the Mediterranean island, stressing that the moment calls for rebuilding trust between its two communities. António Guterres was speaking to journalists in the capital Nicosia at the end of his first official visit to the country, where he met with the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot leaders as well as stakeholders. Mr. Guterres said he held “frank and constructive discussions” with Nikos Christodoulides and Tufan Erhürman, both separately and together. Solidarity and a search for a solutionHe recalled that the UN has consistently worked to assist the communities “in their efforts to reach a comprehensive, sustainable solution to the Cyprus issue”. The island has been divided since July 1974. Recent UN engagement has focused on rebuilding confidence after years without a formal settlement track. Since 2017, six meetings have been held in Switzerland, Germany and the United States in this regard. “In this context, it was my duty to come to Cyprus to express my full solidarity with the people of Cyprus in their quest for a solution,” Mr. Gute...