Christodoulides Meets Turkish Cypriot Peace Group Ahead of New York Talks

The meeting, held at the Presidential Palace in Nicosia, lasted approximately one hour. According to Fileleftheros, the delegation presented its views on demographic concerns in light of the upcoming presidential election in the north and submitted a letter outlining their demands. The group also called for support for journalist Şener Levent, editor-in-chief of Afrika/Avrupa newspaper.

Presidential Press Office Director Viktoras Papadopoulos stated after the meeting that Christodoulides reaffirmed his commitment to a bizonal, bicommunal federal solution and pledged to exert all efforts to return to negotiations.

Papadopoulos added that Christodoulides listened to the concerns raised by the delegation and assured them that the government would work to address the issues where possible. He also referred to the 14 unilateral measures announced by the Greek Cypriot side regarding Turkish Cypriots, noting that a progress report on these measures would be shared with the delegation.

Preparations for New York

The paper reported that preparations continue for the upcoming five-party meeting in New York, with Christodoulides and his close team holding daily coordination meetings.

Deputy Government Spokesman Yiannis Antoniou told state broadcaster RIK that the Greek Cypriot side hopes to receive clarifications on some of the Confidence-Building Measures (CBMs) during the New York visit. While he expressed hope for concrete outcomes that would bring the two sides closer to resuming talks, Antoniou admitted that there was currently no reason for optimism about progress.