President of the Republic Demetris Christofias and Turkish Cypriot leader Dervis Eroglu meet on Friday, in the framework of UN-led direct negotiations aiming to reach a solution to the Cyprus problem.

The meeting is the second of a series of all-day meetings to take place over the next several weeks. The first meeting took place on Monday and lasted over four hours.

In statements that followed Monday’s meeting, UN Secretary General`s Special Representative in Cyprus Liza Buttenheim said that it was one of the four meetings devoted to governance and power sharing, adding that “core issues under this chapter will continue at the next leader’s meeting on Friday July 29“.

Cyprus has been divided since 1974, when Turkish troops invaded and occupied its northern third. Peace talks aim at a negotiated settlement that will reunite the country, under a federal roof.

President Christofias and Eroglu met UN SG Ban Ki-moon in Geneva, on July 7th, and according to Ban`s statement after the meeting, they agreed to enter into an intensive period of negotiations on the core issues of the Cyprus problem, to achieve convergences before meeting again in New York, in October.