The window of opportunity for reaching further progress in Cyprus negotiations is limited, due to the Presidency of the European Council Cyprus is assuming on July 1, 2012, UN Secretary-General Ban ki-Moon has said, during a press conference marking the end of the year.

Ban further called on the two Cyprus leaders to engage and make further progress before their next meeting, scheduled for January 2012 in Greentree, Long Island, by accelerating the pace of the negotiations.

Asked what he expects from the January meeting, Ban responded that he has invited the two leaders to Greentree and will spend two days with them. “This will be a more intensive negotiation than the previous Greentree meeting” Ban added.

He also said that time is quite limited, since Cyprus is going to undertake the Presidency of the EU from July 1, next year.
“So the window of opportunity for further progress in negotiations is limited. It is politically difficult and sensitive when the Presidency of the EU is part of this and practically speaking, the Presidency of the EU will be heavily involved in all other