Guterres evaluated the agenda at the first press conference of 2021, which he held at the UN Headquarters.
When asked about how long he will bring together the Cypriot parties and the statement of the President of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) Ersin Tatar as “We deserve the recognition of our own state”, Guterres replied as follows:
“My intention is to bring together the two societies in Cyprus and the guarantor countries Turkey, Greece and the United Kingdom at the beginning of March. We decided to have an informal meeting with no preconditions. The parties have a chance to honestly debate whether they see the future well. I have a mandate from the UN Security Council on the negotiations and this method offers a bi-communal, bi-faceted solution, but this does not prevent the parties from presenting their positions. If the parties agree to expand the scope of the negotiations, I am always ready to go to the Security Council. The first step is to bring the parties together, listen to them and look at the results of the talks. It means I do not adhere to the authorization I have received It does not mean that I am not open to listening to everybody and to the common point of the parties regarding their future. ”
