LEFKOSA - Leaders in Cyprus met on Wednesday within the scope of negotiations to find a comprehensive solution to Cyprus issue.
President Dervis Eroglu of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) and Greek Cypriot leader Demetris Christofias met at buffer zone in Lefkosa. This is their first gathering after the tripartite meeting with UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon in Geneva on January 26. Ban is expected to gather again with the two leaders in March.
Ban told reporters on Tuesday that "we have held a very fruitful and vibrant meeting in Geneva in terms of exchange of views and I will get together with the leaders again soon on a new round."
Turkish Cypriot and Greek Cypriot sides have been conducting settlement talks since 2008 in a bid to reunify the divided island.
Gaining independence from the United Kingdom in 1960, Cyprus became a bi-communal Republic where Greek and Turkish Cypriot constituent communities would share power guaranteed by the UK, Turkey and Greece.
However, Greek Cypriots soon expelled Turkish Cypriots from power and terrorised and ghettoised them. Decades long armed attacks on the defenseless Turkish Cypriots culminated in 1974 when an Athens-backed Greek Cypriot military coup on the island led to Turkey’s intervention based on its rights stemming from the Treaty of Guarantee.
Although the Republic of Cyprus as described in the 1959 agreements is no longer there, Greek Cypriots continue to enjoy this title and international recognition while the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, a fully democratic government representing Turkish Cypriots, still suffers under an unfair political and economic blockade.
Cyprus joined the EU as a divided island when Greek Cypriots in the south rejected the UN reunification plan in twin referendums in 2004 even though the Turkish Cypriots in the north overwhelmingly supported it.
The promise made by EU foreign ministers before the referendums to end the isolation of the Turkish Cypriots and establish direct trade with north Cyprus remains unfulfilled.
TRNC is an independent republic located in the north of Cyprus. TRNC has received diplomatic recognition from Turkey and it has representations in dozens of countries across the globe.