Your excellency, Mr. Nikos Christodoulides, your excellency Mr. Ersin Tatar, Mr. Mehmet Ali Talat, Madam Sibel Tatar, Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, dear friends, 

Good evening, a warm welcome to all of you to the traditional End-of-Year reception, under the auspices of the Secretary-General’s good offices mission in Cyprus. 

This is an occasion to say thank you to many of the people who work tirelessly all year in the cause of a mutually-agreed resolution to the Cyprus Issue;  

it is also an opportunity to bring the two leaders together in a festive, social setting together with their teams, the diplomatic community, a broad spectrum of civil society from both sides of the island, and the United Nations staff.  

I would also like to recognize that today is Human Rights Day and the culmination of the 16 days of activism campaign against gender-based violence, which is a yearly campaign to raise awareness and galvanize efforts to eliminate the most prevalent breach of violence worldwide- violence against women. In the Pact for the Future this past September, World leaders reaffirmed their commitment to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and on this important day, I echo the Secretary General’s call to protect, defend and uphold all human rights for all people.  

This gathering is also a chance to take stock of what has been achieved in the past year, in the name of a better future for the island.

I am happy to say that while the world around Cyprus continues to face unprecedented challenges, we are witnessing some new glimmers of hope on the Cyprus issue. As you all know, in the first half of the year, a new Personal Envoy of the Secretary-General, Maria Angela Holguín Cuellar, engaged actively with the parties and other key interlocutors.

Building on this work, the Secretary-General hosted Mr. Tatar and Mr. Christodoulides to an informal dinner in New York on 15 October. This was the first time that these two leaders met under the Secretary-General’s auspices.  

They agreed with the Secretary-General to start exploring the opening of new crossing points. I am happy to note that in our initial discussions with the representatives of the leaders, both sides expressed interest in reaching an agreement for the leaders’ decision as soon as possible.  I must say that I sense a new positive attitude in our discussions.  In fact, there was such optimism after the October meeting that both sides speculated how nice it would be to have something to announce at this reception tonight.  

Nothing of this sort is ever quick or easy, but I’m hopeful.  Agreement on crossings I believe is doable in a way that is beneficial to both sides.  Really, all that is needed, as always, is the political will.

The opening of new crossing points would benefit people on both sides of the island and, I strongly believe, would strengthen intra-island interdependence, building positive conditions for a settlement.   An agreement on crossings would also create positive momentum for the next steps. 

The other important thing that was agreed was to meet again informally in a larger format, which will bring together the two leaders and the guarantor powers under the auspices of the Secretary-General for a crucial discussion on the way forward.  Preparations for such a meeting will be undertaken by our Headquarters.

2024 has been a landmark year for the United Nations in Cyprus. The 60th anniversary of the United Nations’ peacekeeping and mediation presence in Cyprus was an unhappy anniversary in a year of unhappy anniversaries, all of which reminded us that a settlement of the Cyprus Issue is long overdue.  Many of you joined us for various events that we have organized throughout the year.  

More than 500 veterans from some 10 countries made a trip back to the island.  For many, an emotional return to Cyprus. It was especially poignant for us to have men who had deployed to Cyprus in 1964 return and share their experiences of those early days of the Mission. 

I want once again to express a special thank you to the representatives of all the member states present here today who have contributed to the more than 150,000 uniformed personnel, troops and police from over 40 troop and police contributing countries, who have served in Cyprus since 1964. I also want to pay tribute to the 187 personnel who gave their lives in the service of peace.   

Amongst the guests tonight are the co-chairs of all the twelve technical committees who have been appointed by the two leaders. As always, these committees have been working quietly throughout the year on a number of good projects.  Thank you for your leadership.

The Technical Committee on Cultural Heritage has had another productive year and completed restauration work at multiple sites of cultural significance, including the Hamidiye mosque (Lefkara), second phase of the conservation of the Apostolos Andreas Monestary (Karpas) the Evdim mosque and cemetery (Limassol district), the Ayios Theodoros church (Karpas), and the Diamante bastion on the Venetian Walls of Famagusta.

The Technical Committee on Environment spearheaded various initiatives, including: a project dedicated to analyzing and coming up with alternatives to the use of poison in remote wildlife areas; a project engaging youth on the geological heritage of Cyprus; important work is also being done to study and develop responses to pests that could devastate citrus trees and other crops, with disastrous economic impact on the island.

The Technical Committee on Culture implemented a second project bringing together all types of artists: Performing arts, Fine arts, Music, Cinema, Folk Art and Literature. It is also launching a website dedicated to facilitating the exchange of experiences and information on cultural matters across the island. 

The Technical Committee on Health continues its collaboration on diseases carried by mosquito, while the Veterinary Subcommittee is now actively looking for ways to allow personal pets to be brought across the green line.  

The Technical Committee on Crossings has adopted a project for the enlargement of the Agios Dometios/Metehan crossing point in Nicosia, which when completed will significantly reduce congestion. 

The Technical Committee on Economic and Commercial Matters implemented its Young Professionals Internship Programme, a pilot project targeting Turkish Cypriots and Greek Cypriots between the ages of 18 and 35 years. 

Work this year has also rekindled in the Humanitarian TCttee, which will have met 10 times by the end of the year; the Gender Committee has recently restarted its work on some new projects; and the Education Committee.  Meanwhile the Crime and Criminal matters Committee and the Broadcasting Committee continue their ongoing good work.

I would like to pay special tribute to the Turkish Cypriot Special Representative, Mr. Günes Onar and the Greek Cypriot Negotiator, Mr. Menalaos Menalaoufor their hard work throughout the year steering these committees and addressing a range of issues between the sides in the regular meeting that I convene.  Actually it is their Coordinators, Seniha Biran Cinar and Theodoros Ioannou, who do most of the work.  But really, the greatest tribute is due to all the members of the technical committees for their efforts for the benefit of all Cypriots. Let me also acknowledge the crucial financial support provided to the Technical Committees by the EU.

This year saw the important resumption of pilgrimages from the north to the Hala Sultan mosque in Larnaca, for which Mr. Christodoulides and his governmenthave provided essential support.  Pilgrimages to churches in the north have also been going well ad this is a sign of good, constructive cooperation between the sides.

In concluding, let me say a brief word about this venue.  This year, as you have seen, we have shifted our event to a new venue, to the ballroom of the historic Ledra Palace Hotel which I understand was the only 5-star hotel on the island when it was built between 1948-1949. Even though the fresh coat of paint given to the ballroom by my Mission Support team ahead of this event has perhaps not been enough to restore the ballroom to its original condition, some remnants of its former glory are still present today, for example in the Greek marble, Italian glass chandeliers and the English oak flooring. 

Thank you to the Cyprus Songs Association for the music tonight.  This is a bicommunal group playing traditional Cypriot songs enjoyed by both communities.

Let me thank everybody who contributed to the organization of this event, under the leadership of the Coordinator of the Good Offices Mission, Mr. Sergiy Illarionov.  

Thank you all for joining us and let me wish you all a peaceful holiday period with your loved ones.