**UN’s Diagne Meets Turkey’s Bozay as Cyprus Problem Efforts Ramp Up**
In a significant development regarding the long-standing Cyprus issue, Khassim Diagne, the chief of the United Nations peacekeeping force in Cyprus (Unficyp), held discussions with Turkish Deputy Foreign Minister Kemal Bozay in Ankara. This meeting is part of ongoing efforts to renew negotiations aimed at resolving the Cyprus problem, which has persisted for decades.
While no formal statements were released following the meeting, it is noteworthy that the discussions occur just ahead of a major NATO leaders’ summit scheduled to take place in Ankara next week. The summit will be hosted by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and is expected to attract numerous high-profile global leaders, including U.S. President Donald Trump, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, European Council President Antonio Costa, and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
Although the Cyprus issue is not anticipated to dominate the agenda at the NATO summit, discussions are expected to touch upon security guarantees in a post-solution Cyprus. These discussions may center around the potential for NATO-based security arrangements, which could involve the new Cypriot republic’s accession to NATO and the presence of NATO troops from member countries including Turkey, Greece, France, the United Kingdom, and the United States on the island.
In a related development, UN envoy for the Cyprus problem, Maria Angela Holguin, has postponed her planned meetings until after the NATO summit. Her next engagement is scheduled for June 13, where she will meet with Antonio Costa in Brussels. When asked about the possibility of Holguin meeting with NATO officials during her visit to Brussels, a NATO official clarified that there are currently no meetings planned and that the topic of security guarantees for Cyprus has not been discussed within NATO.
Following her meetings in Brussels, Holguin is expected to return to Cyprus in the latter half of next month. She aims to organize a larger meeting involving representatives from both sides of Cyprus, the three guarantor powers—Greece, Turkey, and the United Kingdom—and the UN. This meeting, which was initially slated for late July or early August, is now likely to occur later in August at the earliest.
Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides addressed concerns regarding the pace of negotiations, asserting that efforts to resume talks on the Cyprus problem have not been “frozen.” He emphasized that the diplomatic processes are ongoing, stating, “The only thing which is certain is that the effort is not frozen, the effort continues. Holguin will go to Brussels on July 13. There is also the NATO summit. All processes are in full swing, with the aim of convening an enlarged meeting, during which the resumption of talks will be announced.”
Diagne’s visit to Turkey is particularly timely, as the UN Security Council is set to discuss reports on the status of Unficyp and the UN's role in facilitating dialogue on Cyprus on July 16. The outcome of these discussions may influence the future trajectory of negotiations and the international community's involvement in resolving the Cyprus issue.
As the situation develops, stakeholders from various nations continue to monitor the dynamics of the Cyprus problem, with hopes that renewed dialogue may pave the way for a sustainable resolution. The upcoming NATO summit and subsequent meetings are critical milestones in this ongoing diplomatic effort.