“Israel must immediately allow the flow of aid on a scale and without imposing restrictions. This was and remains our position. We expressed this clear approach in the recent FAC” the Foreign Minister said in an interview with the Sunday edition of “Phileleftheros” newspaper.
He noted that to date 22,000 tons of humanitarian aid have been sent to Gaza through the “Amalthea” project, an inititiative of Cyprus for a sea corridor for humanitarian aid to Gaza.
“International law and its humanitarian part guides us and governs our actions” Kombos said, adding that this is why Cyprus acted immediately as regards the humanitarian issue.
Furthermore he said that Nicosia supports the existence of the state of Palestine and the position of the two states in all fora.
It also supports, he said, the need of an immediate ceasefire and the unhindered flow of humanitarian aid.
“In addition, however, we support the release of the hostages, the return of the bodies of the victims to their families and the removal of Hamas from the political future in Gaza,” he pointed out.
Asked about the lifting of sanctions on Syria by the EU, he said that as long as the Syrian leadership is positive, the Republic of Cyprus will stand by the Syrian people, with openings at the bilateral level and in the EU.
Regarding the Cyprus issue and the outcome of the visit of the UNSG’s personal envoy for Cyprus, Maria Angela Holguin, he said that “we agreed on immediate results on what the Secretary-General announced as a package for negotiation.”
“We are positive and constructive. The aim is to move to substantive negotiations and progress in all the areas of discussion raised by the UN Secretary-General,” the Foreign Minister noted.
Concluding, he clarified that the Confidence Building Measures “were set as pre-stages” adding that “unfortunately they do not have the response we are seeking”.
Cyprus has been divided since 1974, when Turkey invaded and occupied its northern third. Repeated rounds of UN-led peace talks have so far failed to yield results due to Turkish intransigence. The latest round of negotiations, in July 2017 at the Swiss resort of Crans-Montana ended inconclusively.
UN Secretary General announced that an informal meeting on Cyprus in a broader format will be held at the end of July, following a similar meeting in Geneva, on March 17-18. The two sides agreed to proceed with a number of initiatives, involving the opening of crossing points, the creation of a Technical Committee on Youth and other initiatives in the buffer zone and throughout the island.
The UN Secretary-General António Guterres announced in early May the appointment of María Angela Holguín Cuéllar of Colombia as his Personal Envoy on Cyprus, who is tasked to reengage with the parties in order to work on next steps on the Cyprus issue and advise him. Holguín completed a previous assignment as Personal Envoy of the Secretary-General on Cyprus from January to July 2024.
The European Commission designated Johannes Hahn, a former European Commissioner, as Special Envoy for Cyprus to contribute to the settlement process, in close cooperation with Holguín.