UN Secretary General’s personal envoy for Cyprus, Maria Angela Holguin has expressed hope for progress on the issues agreed upon by the two sides last March.
Speaking after a meeting she had on Monday in the Turkish occupied areas with Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar, Holguin said she is “very glad to return to the island” as part of preparations for the coming week.
She expressed hope that there will be significant developments regarding the measures decided in March. She also described her meeting with Tatar as constructive and said she would meet with President Nikos Christodoulides later in the day.
Holguin added that she and the negotiators would be working intensively “this afternoon, and likely again on Wednesday.”
She pointed out that all these efforts by the United Nations are aimed at the prosperity of the island and to ensure a better life for its people. “We will continue to work, the UN’s commitment is totally focused in this direction”, she said and expressed hope the leaders share this vision.
The UN diplomat has held a series of contacts in Turkey, Greece, the United Kingdom, Brussels and Paris. Specifically, before returning to Cyprus for a second round of contacts in preparation for the New York meeting, she met with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan in Constantinople, with Greek Foreign Minister Giorgos Gerapetritis in Athens, with British Europe Minister Stephen Doughty in London, with President of the European Council, Antonio Costa and EU Special Envoy for Cyprus Johannes Hahn in Brussels. She also had contacts in Paris.
Cyprus has been divided since 1974, when Turkey invaded and occupied its northern third.
The informal meeting, which will take place at the headquarters of the international organisation in New York on July 16 and 17, was announced by the Spokesperson of the UN Secretary-General, Stephane Dujarric, who said that it would provide an opportunity to continue the dialogue and exchange views on the progress made since March.
After 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.
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.
