Talks to reunite the divided island of Cyprus are set to resume from the point where they stopped last year. The previous round of talks, which were held in the Swiss town of Crans Montana, halted in July 2017.

The leaders of the two communities, Nicos Anastasiades and Mustafa Akıncı, held their first meeting yesterday. In a joint statement released by the United Nations in Cyprus after their meeting, the two leaders announced that the Lefka/Aplici and Deryneia crossing points will open on November 12.

Yesterday Anastasiades received a declaration from unions, political parties and social institutions from the island’s two communities, the Greek Cypriots and the Turkish Cypriots.

The collapse of last years’ UN peace talks fostered mistrust between the two sides, as it had been viewed as one of their last chances to bring a viable solution to the island’s issue. However, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in a recent report to the Security Council that a peace deal to reunify Cyprus remains feasible.

Greek Tribune