Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades on Tuesday cancelled scheduled peace talks with the Turkish Cypriot leader over what he saw as an attempt to recognise the Turkish-held north of the divided island.
The move came after Anastasiades snubbed a state dinner at the world humanitarian summit in Istanbul on Monday on discovering that Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci was also invited.
"With regret President Anastasiades has ascertained there is no fertile ground to hold a planned meeting with the Turkish Cypriot leader on May 27," government spokesman Nicos Christodoulides said.
Anastasiades said he remained committed to peace talks but appeared to call off Friday's meeting in protest.
It is the first serious hitch in UN-brokered peace talks that resumed a year ago and comes despite both leaders saying in a May 15 statement that they remain committed to reunifying the Mediterranean island in 2016.
Akinci's last-minute invitation to the dinner hosted by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was seen as an attempt to bolster the status of the self-declared Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus which only Ankara recognises.
While in Turkey, Akinci also met UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on the sidelines of the summit.
Nicosia called Monday's events "unacceptable", and accused UN Cyprus envoy Espen Barth Eide of involvement in a deeply sensitive diplomatic game.
In New York, UN spokesman Farhan Haq said the United Nations was not involved in the decision to invite the Turkish Cypriot leader to the state dinner.
"This was not an arrangement done by the United Nations," Haq told reporters in New York. "The arrangements were made by the government of Turkey."
The Greek Cypriot side has not formally notified the United Nations of its decision to pull out of the next round of negotiations, said the spokesman.
"At this important time in the process, the secretary-general would like to underline that the two leaders have demonstrated great courage and perseverance in the process and they have achieved a lot. So the secretary-general encourages them to redouble their efforts," said Haq.
Anastasiades said he was ready to continue the Cyprus talks "provided that it meets the rule of mutual respect ... not unilateral moves designed to upgrade the pseudo-state".
"Similar moves by anyone involved, not excluding the UN secretary-general's special adviser on Cyprus, not only don't help, but rather undermine the ongoing process," the government spokesman added in a statement.
It had been thought that good chemistry between Anastasiades and Akinci could create a climate of trust that might lead to an elusive deal.
Cyprus has been divided since 1974, when Turkish troops occupied its northern third in response to an Athens-inspired coup seeking union with Greece.
Long-stalled UN-brokered peace talks -- seen as the best chance to reunify Cyprus -– began in May 2016, with the leaders meeting regularly since then.
Despite both expressing the hope that a settlement can be reached this year, this latest incident has soured the climate.
Ankara does not recognise the Cyprus government and this has harmed its European Union accession process and threatened a visa-free travel deal in exchange for Turkey helping to ease the migrant crisis.
Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades on Tuesday cancelled scheduled peace talks with the Turkish Cypriot leader over what he saw as an attempt to recognise the Turkish-held north of the divided island.
The move came after Anastasiades snubbed a state dinner at the world humanitarian summit in Istanbul on Monday on discovering that Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci was also invited.
“With regret President Anastasiades has ascertained there is no fertile ground to hold a planned meeting with the Turkish Cypriot leader on May 27,” government spokesman Nicos Christodoulides said.
Anastasiades said he remained committed to peace talks but appeared to call off Friday’s meeting in protest.
It is the first serious hitch in UN-brokered peace talks that resumed a year ago and comes despite both leaders saying in a May 15 statement that they remain committed to reunifying the Mediterranean island in 2016.
Akinci’s last-minute invitation to the dinner hosted by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was seen as an attempt to bolster the status of the self-declared Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus which only Ankara recognises.
While in Turkey, Akinci also met UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on the sidelines of the summit.
Nicosia called Monday’s events “unacceptable”, and accused UN Cyprus envoy Espen Barth Eide of involvement in a deeply sensitive diplomatic game.
In New York, UN spokesman Farhan Haq said the United Nations was not involved in the decision to invite the Turkish Cypriot leader to the state dinner.
“This was not an arrangement done by the United Nations,” Haq told reporters in New York. “The arrangements were made by the government of Turkey.”
The Greek Cypriot side has not formally notified the United Nations of its decision to pull out of the next round of negotiations, said the spokesman.
“At this important time in the process, the secretary-general would like to underline that the two leaders have demonstrated great courage and perseverance in the process and they have achieved a lot. So the secretary-general encourages them to redouble their efforts,” said Haq.
Anastasiades said he was ready to continue the Cyprus talks “provided that it meets the rule of mutual respect … not unilateral moves designed to upgrade the pseudo-state”.
“Similar moves by anyone involved, not excluding the UN secretary-general’s special adviser on Cyprus, not only don’t help, but rather undermine the ongoing process,” the government spokesman added in a statement.
It had been thought that good chemistry between Anastasiades and Akinci could create a climate of trust that might lead to an elusive deal.
Cyprus has been divided since 1974, when Turkish troops occupied its northern third in response to an Athens-inspired coup seeking union with Greece.
Long-stalled UN-brokered peace talks — seen as the best chance to reunify Cyprus -– began in May 2016, with the leaders meeting regularly since then.
Despite both expressing the hope that a settlement can be reached this year, this latest incident has soured the climate.
Ankara does not recognise the Cyprus government and this has harmed its European Union accession process and threatened a visa-free travel deal in exchange for Turkey helping to ease the migrant crisis.
