UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon met on Monday in The Hague with Turkish President Abdullah Gül, on the sidelines of the Nuclear Security Summit, and discussed the Cyprus issue inter alia.

“On Cyprus, the Secretary General and the President discussed the current state of play and the way forward in the talks for a comprehensive settlement of the Cyprus issue”, the spokesperson said, adding that “they both agreed that it was critical to maintain the current momentum following the February resumption of full fledged negotiations”.

The spokesperson noted that “the Secretary General encouraged Turkey to continue to engage actively and constructively on the Cyprus issue and thanked them for their support”.

Ban and Gül also had a detailed discussion on the situation in Syria and prospects for the Geneva talks.

Cyprus has been divided since 1974, when Turkey invaded and occupied its northern third.