Press Statement by the Special Adviser of the Secretary-General on Cyprus, Mr. Espen Barth Eide
NICOSIA, 28 October 2016 - The Special Adviser of the Secretary-General on Cyprus (SASG), Mr. Espen Barth Eide, is pleased to announce that Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will open the intensive week of negotiations of the Cyprus talks in Switzerland on Monday 7th November. The Turkish Cypriot leader, Mr. Mustafa Akıncı, and the Greek Cypriot leader, Mr. Nicos Anastasiades, decided earlier this week to continue their intensive negotiations in Mont Pèlerin from 7th to 11th November. The meeting will be held under the auspices of the United Nations and with the generous support of the Government of Switzerland. The meeting will concentrate on the chapter of territory as well as all other outstanding issues interdependently. The two leaders have jointly expressed their hope that the meeting in Switzerland will pave the way for the last phase of the talks, in line with their shared commitment to do their utmost in order to reach a settlement within 2016. It is the first time that the two leaders are negotiating the issue of territory directly, marking a critical juncture in the current process. It is important to recognize the particular sensitivity of this chapter for both sides, which is a key reason why the leaders have agreed to hold the talks outside of Cyprus, and why they want to conduct them interdependently with other relevant chapters. The Secretary-General has been closely following the Cyprus negotiations throughout his tenure, and looks forward to lending his personal support to the work of the two leaders as they are entering this crucial phase of their negotiations. End.