The first meeting between the President of the Republic, Nikos Christodoulides and the recently appointed EU Commission Special Representative for Cyprus, Raffaele Fitto, is taking place on Friday morning at the Presidential Palace.
Fitto arrived on the island on Thursday and is expected to meet with Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhürman later on Friday.
In a cabinet meeting at the Palace, Fitto briefed the members of the Council on developments regarding the Cyprus issue following the visit earlier this week of the UN Secretary-General. He said that the European Union’s role in the process is now accepted by all parties, “something we have sought from the outset”.
He explained that the EU’s role has two dimensions: one concerns the substance of a settlement, while the other relates to EU-Turkey relations and Turkey’s aspirations.
“The EU is firmly committed to the reunification of Cyprus on the basis of a bi-zonal, bi-communal federation, and in accordance with the relevant UN Security Council resolutions, as well as in line with the principles, values and legislation of the EU," said the European Commission’s spokesperson for Cohesion, Maciej Beresteck, on Thursday.
Discussing the EU’s position at the table of future negotiations, the spokesperson said on behalf of the Commission that “we are ready to play an active role in this process with all the means and tools at our disposal, and we are also ready to participate in all the relevant meetings.”
He stressed that Fitto would contribute to the settlement process within the UN framework, in close cooperation with the UN Secretary-General’s Personal Envoy on Cyprus, María Ángela Holguín, “and will also engage with all relevant stakeholders and interlocutors in order to prepare the ground for the resumption of negotiations aimed at a comprehensive and lasting solution for all of Cyprus.”
