Christodoulides hopes for “positive developments” after Guterres dinner

Politics Antonio GuterresCyprus problemNikos ChristodoulidesTop NewsTufan ErhurmanunUnited Nations Christodoulides hopes for “positive developments” after Guterres dinner 1c51f5ddbf46d7d19c18a4654ac99709 Relevant News Christodoulides hopes for “positive developments” after Guterres dinner 28 July 2026 Traffic collision on Nicosia-Larnaca motorway near Athienou closes lane 28 July 2026 Federation supporters rally on both sides, with Guterres dinner underway (photos) 28 July 2026 Newsroom 28 July 2026 FacebookXWhatsAppEmailPrintViber President Nikos Christodoulides said on Tuesday evening he hopes to hear positive developments tomorrow, following a trilateral dinner with UN Secretary-General António Guterres and Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhürman. Speaking to reporters immediately after returning to the Presidential Palace from the dinner, Christodoulides was asked whether the discussion had been as good as his morning meeting with Guterres. “It was a discussion that covered all the issues: substance, methodology, convergences, the expanded meeting, confidence-building measures, all of it. The discussion will continue tomorrow morning, and we hope there will be specific announcements. We are working towards that. It was a good, open, honest discussion,” he said. “I want to once again express my satisfaction that the Secretary-General repeated tonight that he is politically committed to this effort. We discussed everything, I’ve told you specifically which aspects, and tomorrow this discussion will continue,” he added. Asked whether his reference to an “honest discussion” meant the two sides’ known disagreements had resurfaced, and what that suggests about tomorrow’s expected announcements, Christodoulides said: “There were also issues where there was a different approach, that’s nothing new, but it was an honest discussion, with arguments and counter-arguments. I repeat, what mattered was that it covered the substance, the convergences, the methodology, the expanded meeting, confidence-building measures, and covered all the topics. It was a wide-ranging discussion, but also a targeted one, because we want the Secretary-General to make specific announcements. Tomorrow we’ll continue at 10am with that same goal: specific announcements.” Asked whether any announcement would concern confidence-building measures specifically, Christodoulides said it would concern “more broadly everything we discussed. We discussed all the aspects: the convergences directly tied to methodology, the substance of the Cyprus problem, the expanded meeting, which is a very important aspect, and confidence-building measures — all the issues.” Asked whether announcements can be expected on all these fronts, he replied: “That’s the goal. That’s the goal we go into these meetings with, tonight and tomorrow, and I want to be optimistic that there will be announcements. The Secretary-General’s intentions are clear. We support this initiative. As I’ve said many times, after a lot of hard work, they’re looking at the European Union’s role too — Mr Fitto will be in Cyprus in the coming days. So we’re seeing an international initiative both from the UN and from the EU that is moving — I wish it could move even faster, honestly, I’m ready for all of this to start even tomorrow — towards the big goal, which is resuming talks from where they were interrupted in 2017.” Asked whether the overall sign was positive, Christodoulides said: “We’ll see tomorrow. If you ask me right now, I’m satisfied with the discussion we had. It was a good discussion, and I’m glad the Secretary-General is so politically committed to this effort. We will continue, I repeat, until we achieve our goal.” “I often think about where we started in March 2023 and where we are today, in terms of international interest and what we’re discussing now. We will continue this major effort. For us, as I said again tonight, there is no alternative to resolving the Cyprus problem. We know what we want, we know where we want to end up, and we know the means we’re using are producing results. I hope to hear positive developments, positive results, from the Secretary-General tomorrow. The discussion will continue at 10am, and we’ll be here to comment on it again,” he said. Background Guterres arrived in Cyprus on Tuesday for his first visit as UN Secretary-General, holding an expanded meeting with Christodoulides at the Presidential Palace in the morning, followed by a one-on-one meeting between the two men. He then travelled to the occupied areas to meet Erhürman. Leaving the Palace earlier in the day, Guterres said he remained committed to supporting both Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots in finding a solution to the Cyprus problem, while Government Spokesperson Konstantinos Letymbiotis said the goal is to convene an informal expanded conference that would serve as the springboard for resuming negotiations. Tuesday’s dinner, held at the residence of the UN Secretary-General’s Special Representative in Cyprus, brought the two leaders together with Guterres for the first time since his arrival. The two sides are due to hold a joint meeting on Wednesday morning, followed by a press conference before Guterres’s departure from Cyprus. Cyprus problem talks have been stalled since the collapse of negotiations at Crans-Montana in 2017. 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