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UN chief welcomes resumption of Cyprus talks

Xinhua, May 16, 2015 Adjust font size:

UN Secretary General Ban Ki- moon welcomed the resumption of full-fledged negotiations which started Friday between the Greek Cypriot leader and the Turkish Cypriot leader, said a UN spokesman.

Ban welcomed in a statement issued Thursday night the resumption of full-fledged negotiations between the Greek Cypriot leader Nicos Anastasiades and the Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci under the facilitation of Espen Barth Eide, the special adviser of the UN Secretary General on Cyprus, said deputy UN spokesman Farhan Haq at a daily news briefing here.

Eide said that the two leaders undertook to work tirelessly to reach as soon as possible a comprehensive settlement of the Cyprus question. The two leaders agreed that this will be a leader-led process and began elaborating their shared vision for a united federal Cyprus.

The two leaders also agreed to meet at least twice a month. Their next meeting will take place on May 28.

As a sign of their mutual commitment, Akinci and Anastasiades agreed to work together on a number of trust-building measures that would mutually benefit the two communities.

The UN secretary general hopes to speak with the leaders and Eide separately Friday when possible, according to Haq.

Since a Turkish military invasion in 1974 the island has been effectively partitioned, with Turkish Cypriots inhabited the north end and Greek Cypriots the southern part of the island. Endite