Cyprus peace deal ‘difficult’ but doable

Good start to talks over divided island but main issue of territory still on table

GENEVA // Reaching a deal to end decades of conflict in Cyprus will be difficult, but not impossible, the UN envoy for the divided island said yesterday as a new round of peace talks began.

“We are now in the final moment. We are now really at the moment of truth,” Espen Barth Eide said in Geneva after rival Cypriot leaders resumed negotiations.

He said the talks had made a good start, but acknowledged that while most issues had been solved, the remaining problems were “the most complicated or most emotional issues”.

He said: “This is going to be difficult, but it is possible.” His comments came after Greek Cypriot president Nicos Anastasiades and Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci, who have negotiated for more than 18 months in the run-up to the talks, began three days of talks at the UN headquarters in Geneva yesterday. The two leaders, who have been among the most outspoken proponents of a deal, settled around a large table with their delegations and delv ed into the thorny issues, including the pivotal matter of how much territory each side will control in a federation.

The two sides are meeting for three days in Geneva, and by tomorrow they should be ready to provide maps of their proposals for the internal boundaries of a future bi-zonal federation on the eastern Mediterranean island.

If that goes to plan, they will be joined from Thursday by the leaders of the island’s three guarantor powers – former colonial ruler Britain, Greece and Turkey – to tackle the difficult issue of post-settlement security arrangements. One of the questions is how high level Thursday’s conference on Cyprus will be.

Mr Barth Eide said the powers would probably be represented “at the highest or the second highest level” with Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Greek prime minister Alexis Tsipras expected to attend, while foreign secretary Boris Johnson will reportedly represent Britain.

The United Nations has pulled out all the stops in its attempt to secure a deal, eyeing the best chance of a settlement in more than a decade.

“It is a real possibility that 2017 will be the year when the Cypriots, themselves, freely decide to turn the page of history,” said Mr Barth Eide. Cyprus, home to a bout one million people, has been divided since 1974, when Turkish troops invaded the island in response to an Athens- inspired coup seeking union with Greece.

Nine years later, Turkish Cypriot leaders declared a breakaway state in the north, which is recognised only by Ankara. The years of communal violence, which culminated in the Turkish invasion, caused tens of thousands from both sides to flee their homes, and they remain displaced to this day.

Mr Barth Eide insisted on the importance of taking advantage of the current momentum in the talks to end the stalemate.

‘ We are now in the final moment Espen Barth Eide UN envoy for Cyprus