Cyprus’ Ministry of Foreign Affairs welcomes the unanimous renewal by the UN Security Council of the mandate of the UN Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus, until July 31, 2021.

According to a relevant press release, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs expresses satisfaction at the fact that through resolution 2561, the Security Council reaffirms the basis for a solution to the Cyprus problem with explicit references in the preamble and in the operative part.
 
“It also reaffirms all its previous Resolutions on Cyprus and notably the particularly important Resolution 1251, which stipulates that a Cyprus settlement must be based on a State of Cyprus with a single sovereignty and international personality and a single citizenship, comprising two politically equal communities as described in the relevant Security Council resolutions, in a bi-communal and bi-zonal federation”, the Ministry points out.
 
At the same time, it is added, the Security Council expresses its full support for the Secretary-General`s Good Offices mission and to the existing body of work in relation to the negotiations, as well as for the Secretary-General`s efforts to convene an informal 5 + UN meeting leading to the resumption of negotiations to negotiate a sustainable lasting solution to the Cyprus problem within a foreseeable horizon.
 
In relation to the Turkish violations in Varosha, the Ministry notes that the Security Council reaffirms the Presidential Statement of the Security Council of 9 October 2020, expresses its deep concern at the developments and calls for the reversal of this course of action, while reaffirming the relevant resolutions with special reference to 550 and 789. It is also important that, in relation to Varosha, the Resolution reiterates that no actions should be carried out that are not in accordance with those resolutions and, calls for avoiding actions that undermine the prospects for a peaceful settlement.

The resolution also “reiterates its call for the reduction of tensions in the Eastern Mediterranean and underlines that disputes should be resolved peacefully in accordance with applicable international law which constitutes a clear message towards Turkey”.
 
It is added that the Security Council expresses serious concern at the continued violations of the status quo, which reflects the responsibility of the Turkish army in this regard and calls for respect to UNFICYP’s mandated authority within the buffer zone. It reiterates, also, its call to the occupation army to restore the status quo in Strovilia and reaffirms that UNFICYP’s freedom of movement should be respected.
 
“It also calls for enhanced cooperation of all parties with the Committee on Missing Persons (CMP), in particular through providing full access without delay to all areas and responding in a timely manner to requests for archival information on possible burial sites which constitutes a clear message towards Turkey”, the Ministry points out.
 
The resolution also refers to the need to further promote Confidence Building Measures, reopening of all crossing points, ensuring effective coordination to prevent the spread of the pandemic, and the need for increased participation of women, youth and civil society in the efforts to promote reunification, and for further empowering and improving the performance of the Technical Committees.

Permanent Representative to the UN: Adoption important for efforts to resume negotiations
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In a statement, Permanent Representative of Cyprus to the United Nations, Andreas Mavroyiannis, welcomed the adoption of the UNFICYP resolution with the same mandate and the same strength and he thanked all members of the Security Council for the adoption of the resolution.

He added that “the resolution just adopted is also very important for reasons that have to do with the current situation in Cyprus and the efforts for the resumption of the negotiations for the settlement of the Cyprus problem.”

He also noted that the resolution reconfirms and reaffirms very strongly the basis of the sought-after solution of the Cyprus problem, as a bi-zonal, bi-communal federation, with political equality as described by the Security Council resolutions.

Mavroyiannis added that the resolution also calls to continue building on the existing body of work and expresses its encouragement to the Secretary-General in order to convene in the coming weeks, what the UN calls a “5 + 1” meeting, in order to put the process back on track.