Middle East war a ‘constant reminder’ that Cyprob status quo is unacceptable

President Nikos Christodoulides pledged on Sunday he was headed to the tripartite meeting in New York with the sole goal of resuming negotiations.

“I will honour the mandate I received from the Cypriot people and I will exhaust every negotiating possibility in the search for a solution. A sustainable, functional solution,” he said during an event for Morphou in Astromeritis.

Christodoulides is slated to have dinner with Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar and UNSG Antonio Guterres on Tuesday evening.

The President said he was going with the necessary realism and confidence.

“We are ready to go straight to negotiations from where they cut off in the summer of 2017.” He added the basis of a solution should be within the agreed framework and the values of the EU.

Christodoulides specified he was encouraged by the latest National Council meeting, despite whatever differences and criticisms emerged.

“Morphou is not negotiable, neither is any part of our occupied land.”

He added that international and EU partners “recognise the honesty of our intentions.”

Christodoulides said Cyprus knows of pain and refugees, and as such plays an important role as a pillar of security and stability. He noted, however, that “the backdrop of the war that is raging next to us, at the same time sends another message that we all need to take into account.

“It is a constant reminder that the status quo is neither sustainable nor safe”.

He also shared his conviction that a solution to the Cyprus problem is not a pipedream.

“We are working very methodically, we know our goals, we know very well where and how we will reach our destination. We are making use of our European status and our country’s geostrategic advantage, we are strengthening the diplomatic footprint of the Republic of Cyprus – and this is neither wishful thinking nor our own assessment, it is the approaches of the international community.”