Ahead of planned talks next month, Germany鈥檚 Chancellor Angela Merkel has called on the Greek Cypriot administration to show 鈥渨illingness to compromise鈥� for a settlement of the Cyprus dispute.
At a news conference in Berlin on Friday, Merkel鈥檚 spokesperson said the chancellor spoke to Greek Cypriot leader Nicos Anastasiades on Thursday to discuss developments in the Eastern Mediterranean and the UN鈥檚 recent invitation to Greek and Turkish Cypriot leaders.
鈥淭he chancellor has expressed her full support for the UN鈥檚 efforts,鈥� Steffen Seibert said, adding that the UN-sponsored talks in April will aim to find common ground for negotiations on a solution to the Cyprus problem.
鈥淭he chancellor has underlined that to achieve this, in order to make progress, we need to see openness, willingness to compromise and courage from both sides,鈥� he added.
The UN has invited Turkish and Greek Cypriot leaders, as well as the guarantor states Turkey, Greece, and the UK, for informal talks in Geneva from April 27 to April 29.
The Cyprus issue remains unresolved despite a series of efforts in the last two decades, including a failed 2017 UN initiative with the participation of the guarantor countries.
The island has been divided since 1964, when ethnic attacks forced Turkish Cypriots to withdraw into enclaves for their safety.
In 1974, a Greek Cypriot coup aiming at Greece鈥檚 annexation led to Turkey鈥檚 military intervention as a guarantor power to protect
Turkish Cypriots from persecution and violence.
The Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) was founded in 1983.
The Greek Cypriot south entered the EU in 2004, the same year that Greek Cypriots thwarted a UN bid 鈥� the Annan Plan 鈥� to end the decades-long dispute in a referendum.
Anadolu Agency
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