Cyprus Says Close to Reviving Talks

Cyprus said on Wednesday, Feb 5, it was close to reviving stalled peace talks between the island’s Greek and Turkish communities, Reuters reports. The United Nations has been toiling for months on the wording of a ‘joint statement’ to restart negotiations between the island’s two dominant groups that broke off in mid-2012. “Important consultations are underway related to drafting a final and substantive joint statement,” said Christos Stylianides, spokesman for Cyprus’s internationally recognized Greek Cypriot government. Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades was expected to visit Athens on Thursday ahead of a meeting with Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras and Foreign Affairs Minister Evangelos Venizelos on Friday, Cypriot government spokesman Christos Stylianidis announced on Wednesday. Anastasiades was expected to inform the Greek government of recent developments in the ongoing efforts for a fresh round of peace talks under UN hospices regarding the island country’s future. Negotiations have repeatedly stumbled on issues ranging from power sharing to redrawing territorial boundaries, as well as property claims of tens of thousands of displaced persons. Cyprus has been divided since 1974 following a Turkish invasion after a coup led by supporters of the island’s union with Greece.

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