There should be deliverables at the expanded Cyprus Conference in New York, taking place 16-17 July, Deputy Government Spokesperson Yiannis Antoniou said. He added that the process should remain alive and conditions must be created for the next step, which is the resumption of the peace talks.

Antoniou was speaking to the press on Sunday, following a memorial service in Limassol for two of the army officers who lost their lives at the deadly blast in Mari naval base on July 11, 2011.

In his statements the Deputy Spokesperson went on to say that the President is ready for all scenarios in NYC  and fully prepared.

Invited to comment on Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar’s remarks on the UNSG draft reports for his Good Offices and UFICYP and on usurpation of properties of Greek Cypriots in the Turkish occupied areas, Antoniou said that these comments do not leave room for optimism.

These comments, he added, and the general stance of the Turkish side, leave no room for realistic expectations.

But he went on to note that our side will turn to advantage of the NYC meeting and of UNSG’s initiative. Antoniou also said that we support his personal envoy’s mission.

He added that we want “deliverables from the meeting that will lead to the resumption of the talks from where they left off in July 2017 in Crans Montana.”

Invited to comment on the SG’s draft reports on his Good Offices and UNFICYP, Antoniou recalled that the UNSG keeps an “equal distance” approach as this is his role.

He said that our side may have disagreements with some of his remarks and observations, namely on the issue of usurpation. “We convey our reservations. We are at the stage of advance copies, we are making representations so that we can try to effect the changes we wish,” he noted.

Antoniou said that the President will convey to the SG’s personal envoy his readiness to proceed to the NY meeting in a constructive mode and positive spirit.

He also said that he does not know where she will also see the Turkish Cypriot leader but usually she holds contacts with both sides.

Antoniou did not want to make any comments on Cyprus MEP Phidias Panagiotou’s remarks following an interview with the T/c leader in the Turkish occupied areas.

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 due to Turkish intransigence. The latest round of negotiations, in July 2017 at the Swiss resort of Crans-Montana ended inconclusively.

A meeting in a broader format under the UNSG auspices is taking place in NYC July 16-17 following a similar one in Geneva last March.

In May SG reappointed María Angela Holguín Cuéllar of Colombia as his Personal Envoy on Cyprus. The European Commission designated Johannes Hahn, a former European Commissioner, as Special Envoy for Cyprus to contribute to the settlement process, in close cooperation with Holguín.

Source: Parikiaki.com