In Geneva, Secretary-General meets with two Cypriot leaders
8 November -- Working to foster a comprehensive approach to settling the question of Cyprus, Secretary-General Kofi Annan today held separate meetings in Geneva with Glafcos Clerides and Rauf Denktash, the respective leaders of the Greek and Turkish Cypriot communities.
After these sessions, which included members representing both parties, the Secretary-General told the press that he had shared with them his assessment of where things stood with the Cyprus talks and "where things should go from here," according to a UN spokesman, who added that Mr. Annan "did not go into details."
Mr. Annan also told reporters that he hoped the two Cypriot leaders would "understand my words as an effort to take further steps in the direction of a comprehensive approach to a settlement." He stressed that the UN was seeking to facilitate the parties' efforts to reach that goal, "and my observations are offered to them in this constructive spirit."
Prior to his meetings with Mr. Clerides and Mr. Denktash, the Secretary-General consulted with his Special Adviser on Cyprus, Alvaro de Soto, and his Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs, Kieran Prendergast. They reviewed the current state of the Cyprus proximity talks, which are chaired by Mr. de Soto.
The Secretary-General said that he had asked Mr. de Soto to travel to Athens, Ankara and Cyprus later this month, and had invited the two leaders to resume talks in January. The current round of talks began on 1 November.
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