Cyprus problem: Christodoulides and Erhürman agree on two new crossing points – what the UN statement says

Two new crossing points on the ceasefire line will open simultaneously in Cyprus, following an agreement between President of the Republic Nikos Christodoulides and Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhürman. The agreement came on Monday, November 9, at the meeting the two men held in the Nicosia buffer zone under the auspices of the UN Secretary-General’s Personal Envoy, María Ángela Holguín.

They are the crossing point that will connect Louroujina with Lympia, in the Nicosia district, and the one from Kampos in Tillyria to Karavostasi. The United Nations statement calls the meeting “positive” and specifies that the two points will operate at the same moment.

What else the two leaders agreed

The discussion moved along three axes: confidence-building measures, the methodology of contacts and the substance of the Cyprus problem. Beyond the crossing points, the two sides decided to exchange archival material through the Technical Committee on Cultural Heritage. The same committee will take on the restoration of specific Maronite churches and an Armenian monastery.

Environmental projects to be carried out by the corresponding technical committee were also agreed, as was the relaunch of Imagine, a bicommunal educational initiative, under the Technical Committee on Education. The Technical Committee on Crisis Management will be tasked with setting up a rapid-response mechanism for emergencies.

The opening of further crossing points was also put on the table, along with other open issues. Discussion on these, and on methodology and substance, will continue in the coming period, including at a tripartite meeting of the two leaders with UN Secretary-General António Guterres in the coming weeks.

The background

The meeting followed separate contacts by Ms Holguín with Mr Christodoulides and Mr Erhürman, and with the co-chairs of the 13 technical committees, during her recent stay on the island. The UN Good Offices Mission, which supports the technical committees, has the mandate to help the two communities reach a comprehensive and viable settlement through UN-led negotiations. A few days earlier Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan had visited the occupied areas, with Ankara insisting on a “two-state solution.”

Nicosia, for its part, has set Famagusta as its main priority. Mr Christodoulides has described the fenced-off city as the most important confidence-building measure and the first step toward a solution.