UN Secretary General Ban Ki -moon and Cyprus Minister of Foreign Affairs Markos Kyprianou discussed in Constantinople on Monday the need for accelerated progress in the negotiations.

Their meeting took place in the fringes of the Fourth United Nations Conference on Least Developed Countries.

According to a UN SG spokesman Ban Ki-moon said “both communities would need to work in a spirit of compromise and with a longer-term vision to reach a mutually acceptable comprehensive solution”.

The two men also discussed developments in Syria, Libya and Egypt.

Ban Ki-moon also met with Turkish President Abdullah Gul and exchanged views with him on developments in the Middle East and North Africa, particularly the situation in Libya. The two men also discussed the Cyprus question and the Western Balkans.