Throughout its presence in Cyprus, the United Nations has provided its assistance to the communities in their attempts to bridge their differences. Today, the United Nations is once again facilitating efforts to reach a mutually acceptable solution to the long-standing division on the island.

Recently, there has been an increase in engagement on the Cyprus issue, with the period between January 2024 and July 2025 seeing the most activity since July 2017. 

Building on the work of his Personal Envoy on Cyprus in the first half of 2024, María Ángela Holguín Cuéllar, the Secretary-General engaged with the two leaders and the guarantor powers, Greece, Türkiye and the United Kingdom. On 15 October 2024, the Secretary-General hosted the Greek Cypriot leader, Nikos Christodoulides, and the Turkish Cypriot leader, Ersin Tatar, at an informal dinner in New York. The leaders agreed to have an informal meeting in a broader format, under the auspices of the Secretary-General, to discuss the way forward. They also agreed to meet in Cyprus to explore the possibility of opening new crossing points at a meeting in January 2025 hosted by SRSG/DSASG Stewart.

2025 began with the first formal meeting of the two Cypriot leaders since 2020 in Cyprus, with the UN’s sustained engagement continuing in February with a visit to the island and consultations with the Guarantor Powers by Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs, Rosemary A. DiCarlo. The Secretary-General convened an informal meeting in a broader format in Geneva on 17-18 March 2025, with the Greek Cypriot leader, Nikos Christodoulides, and the Turkish Cypriot leader, Ersin Tatar, plus representatives of the Guarantor Powers Greece, Türkiye and the United Kingdom. ​Six trust-building initiatives were agreed in Geneva, as was the re-appointment of the Secretary-General’s Personal Envoy on Cyprus, María Ángela Holguín Cuéllar – which took place on 2 May. 

The Personal Envoy visited the island as well as the Guarantor Powers during the following months in advance of the meeting in New York that took place in the broader format on 16-17 July.  They reviewed progress on the six initiatives they agreed in March and out of the six, four have been achieved: 1) the creation of a technical committee on youth; 2) initiatives on the environment and climate change, including the impact on mining areas; 3) the restoration of cemeteries; and 4) an agreement on demining will be closed once the final technical details are established. Discussions will continue on the remaining two: the opening of four crossing points; and solar energy in the buffer zone.  In addition, they came to a common understanding on: a consultative body for civil society engagement; an exchange of cultural artifacts; an initiative on air quality monitoring; and addressing microplastic pollution. The two Cypriot leaders agreed to meet together next with the Secretary-General on the sidelines of the General Assembly High-Level week in late September in New York and it was also agreed that there would be another informal meeting in a broader format, including representatives of the Guarantor Powers later in 2025. As noted by the Secretary-General after the July 2025 informal meeting, these steps clearly demonstrate a commitment to continuing a dialogue on the way forward and working on initiatives that benefit all Cypriots.

While the parties continue to have different positions vis-à-vis the peace process, the UN Good Offices Mission engages on the island on issues of mutual interest and importance, including the trust-building initiatives agreed at the broader format meetings. In addition, the Mission facilitates the 13 Technical Committees, with Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot members, designed to improve the everyday lives of ordinary Cypriots. Regular dialogue helps resolve conflict and increase interaction and trust between the two communities.