The dinner with Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci to be hosted by the UN on 16th April, is a social dinner without agenda, President of the Republic Nicos Anastasiades has said.
Speaking on Sunday after an event held at the “Fylakismena Mnimata“ , the graves of the heroes of the anti-colonial liberation struggle of 1955-1959, in Nicosia, the President said that the steps to be followed will be assessed during the dinner. Invited to comment on the fact that while a dinner date has been set by the UN, Turkey has issued a new, illegitimate NAVTEX, the President pointed out that if the dinner had a substantive content, he would have taken into account the illegal actions of Ankara.
He went on to say that the dinner with the Turkish Cypriot leader is a simple one, without agenda to see and think of how we move on. President Anastasiades said that the country needs peace and stability which can be achieved through dialogue.
Replying to a question about recent statements made by Akinci on the Cyprus problem, the President chose not to comment.
Asked by the journalists to send a message on the occasion of the anniversary of the EOKA liberation struggle of 1955-1959, President Anastasiades said that bravery, faith and unity of the EOKA heroes led to the establishment of the Cyprus Republic, an independent and sovereign state. He pointed out however that mistakes, divisions and Turkish actions led to what we today experience.
He added that in order to terminate the Turkish occupation of the country we must have consensus, unity and commitment to our goals so that we can achieve a viable and just solution , one which will allow for peaceful coexistence with the Turkish Cypriots.
Last week the UN announced that the two leaders will be meeting at an informal dinner on April 16th, hosted by the Deputy Special Advisor of the Secretary-General (DSASG) on Cyprus, Elizabeth Spehar, at the Chief of Mission’s residence in the buffer zone.
The two leaders have been engaged in UN-backed negotiations for a solution to the Cyprus problem. The latest round of talks took place in July 2017 at the Swiss resort of Crans Montana but failed to yield any results.
UN talks aim at reuniting Cyprus, divided since the 1974 Turkish invasion, under a federal roof.