The President of the Republic, Nikos Christodoulides, has expressed his satisfaction with the discussion that took place at the National Council meeting on Friday, during which he briefed political party leaders on the latest developments in the Cyprus problem, in view of his trip to New York, noting that he feels strengthened in the effort to break the impasse and restart the peace talks.
In his statement after a national memorial service on Saturday, the President said that "I want to express my great satisfaction for the discussion at the National Council. I feel clearly more strengthened in the effort to break the impasse and restart the talks".
He also expressed his joy in relation to the upcoming tripartite Cyprus-Greece-Israel Summit. "I want to express my joy because tomorrow I will welcome the Israeli Prime Minister and later the Greek Prime Minister for bilateral consultations and also for the tripartite meeting, the first after the election or re-election for some, of all three of us, where we will discuss specific issues and there will be relevant announcements", he noted.
Asked if he is concerned that Turkey does not accept the EU's involvement in the process for a Cyprus settlement, the President said that whether Turkey accepts it or not the EU is involved in the Cyprus conflict. "So you can't change something that is a fact", he added.
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. The latest round of negotiations, in July 2017 at the Swiss resort of Crans-Montana ended inconclusively.
Source: Cyprus News Agency