Turkish Cypriot leader to meet UN chief in Brussels

ANKARA

Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) President Ersin Tatar will meet with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in Brussels on Friday, the presidency said on Wednesday.


Tatar will be accompanied by his Special Representative M. Ergun Olgun, Presidential Undersecretary Okan Donangil, Foreign Ministry Undersecretary Ismet Korukoglu, and Legal Affairs Advisor Sulen Karabacak.


Guterres is also expected to meet with Greek Cypriot leader Nicos Anastasiades on Friday.

On Tuesday, Tatar and Anastasiades had separate meetings with Jane Holl Lute, UN special envoy on the Cyprus dispute.

The island of Cyprus has been divided since 1974, when a Greek Cypriot coup aimed at Greece’s annexation of the island was followed by violence against the island’s Turks and Ankara’s intervention as a guarantor power.

It has seen an on-and-off peace process in recent years, including a failed 2017 initiative in Switzerland under the auspices of guarantor countries Turkey, Greece, and the UK.