The leaders of the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot communities today held the first of 19 intensive, all-day, United Nations-supported meetings aimed at reunifying the island.
The meeting between Greek Cypriot leader Dimitris Christofias and his Turkish Cypriot counterpart, Dervis Eroglu, “took place in a positive atmosphere,” said Special Representative of the Secretary-General Lisa M. Buttenheim.
The first four meetings, at the headquarters of the UN Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP), were devoted to governance and power-sharing, said Ms. Buttenheim, who heads the mission.
Both parties earlier this month accepted an offer from Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon for an enhanced UN mediation role in the talks aimed at achieving a united Cyprus. Mr. Ban said at the time he expected both sides to reach convergence on core issues by October.