Cyprus President Nikos Christodoulides pointed out that the current state of affairs in Cyprus cannot be the future of the country. He added that through concerted efforts, mobilisation, contacts, and pressure, the government has managed to reopen the prospects for the resumption of negotiations.

“The appointment of the United Nations Secretary-General’s special envoy is a point of optimism, without ignoring the problems, difficulties, and challenges,” said President Christodoulides during a memorial service held at the Holy Church of Panagia Evangelistria in Dali in honour of hero Dimitris Hamatsos,

The President also said that “we have an obligation to demonstrate determination and persistence to end the current unacceptable state of affairs, to resolve the Cyprus issue, and reunify our homeland based on United Nations resolutions and the European acquis.”

President Christodoulides underscored the need to show dignity in the face of the sacrifice of heroes and fighters and strive for a free, united, and reunified Cyprus, a member state of the European Union.

“Sixty years after his sacrifice and the tragic events of ’64 and fifty years after the barbaric Turkish invasion of 1974, we find ourselves at a critical juncture in the history of our homeland,” the President also said.

Cyprus has been divided since 1974, when Turkey invaded and occupied its northern third. Repeated rounds of UN-led peace talks have so far failed to yield results. The latest round of negotiations, in July 2017 at the Swiss resort of Crans-Montana ended inconclusively. UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres appointed María Ángela Holguín Cuéllar of Colombia as his personal envoy for Cyprus, to assume a Good Offices role on his behalf and search for common ground on the way forward in the Cyprus issue.