Going to Switzerland will not make easier a final solution on Cyprus
UN envoy says Greeks and Turkish Cypriots seek peace deal
Rival leaders of Cyprus hope to achieve a breakthrough reunification agreement when they meet in Crans-Montana, Switzerland, later this month, a United Nations envoy said today.
Espen Barth Eide said the U.N. is preparing for the possibility that the summit starting June 28 could “last for weeks.”
He said if there’s success, more work will be needed to finalize a peace accord that would be put to a vote in both the Greek and Turkish Cypriot communities.
“This is really a historic opportunity,” Eide said after talks with the island’s Greek Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades.
“It’s not getting easier just because we’re going to Switzerland, but there is a determination and a willingness that I can register now that we go with that ambition.”
The summit is seen as the culmination of more than two years of negotiations between Anastasiades and the leader of the breakaway Turkish Cypriots, Mustafa Akinci. It will focus on a security structure after the island is reunified as federation and will include Cyprus’ “guarantors” _ Greece, Turkey and Britain.
Other outstanding issues, like how much territory will make up each side’s federal zones, will be discussed in parallel but in a separate room. -AP
