British Prime Minister Theresa May called Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan to discuss the upcoming Geneva-based Conference on Cyprus, an official Downing Street press release read today.
Citing an unnamed Spokesperson, the press release stated: “The Prime Minister called Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan earlier today to discuss the Cyprus peace talks.
“They agreed on the importance of reaching a successful resolution to the Cyprus peace talks in Geneva, noting that this was a real opportunity to secure a better future for Cyprus and to guarantee stability in the wider region.”
The PM also expressed that “she looked forward to visiting Turkey early this year.”
CONFERENCE REPRESENTATION
The call follows on from reports that Erdogan himself would not be attending the talks, but Prime Minister Binali Yildirim would be representing Turkey on the negotiating table.
Yesterday an unnamed British Government source told CNA English that Britain’s Government will be represented at the Conference at the “appropriate level”.
“If we reach that level [Erdogan attending], then I would imagine that the UK would also be represented by the Prime Minister.
“Nothing has been finalised [on UK representation]. We wait to see what the other two sides will decide.”
BRITAIN’S CYPRUS MEETINGS
According to Britain’s Foreign Office yesterday, details on a meeting between Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson and the Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Kotzias are “still under discussion”.
Kotzias said earlier this week that Johnson had invited him to London for talks prior to the Swiss talks.
CNA English reported that the Johnson-Kotzias meeting would ‘most likely’ be Sunday evening, as the Greek Foreign Minister will be returning from his New York meeting with UN chief Antonio Guterres and Turkish FM Mevlut Cavusoglu.
Johnson’s meeting with Kotzias could possibly be held in Geneva, as long as the Foreign Secretary would be included within the British delegation.
“We are still working out the details,” said the Foreign Office, according to CNA English.
Last week UK Minister for Europe, Alan Duncan, concluded a two-day trip to Turkey and Greece where he held talks on the upcoming Conference with officials from both countries.
In November, Johnson had visited Cyprus to discuss the negotiations, expressing that the “UK’s commitment to Cyprus remains rock solid.”
In September, Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades travelled to London for talks with May, where the UK PM “underlined the UK’s steadfast support for the process and said the UK stood ready to help bring this to a successful conclusion.”
BACKGROUND
Anastasiades and Turkish Cypriot chief Mustafa Akinci decided earlier this month to resume their Swiss-based talks on January 9, 2017.
On January 11, they are expected to present their respective maps on the territorial chapter.
On January 12, the Conference on Cyprus will be convened with guarantor powers (Greece, the UK, Turkey) and other relevant parties.
Anastasiades and Akinci have been engaged in UN-led talks since May 2015 aiming to reunify the island under a federal roof, following Turkey’s 1974 invasion and illegal occupation on the island.
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