By Martin Hellicar
DIEGO Cordovez, the UN Secretary-General’s special advisor for Cyprus, arrived on the island yesterday and began contacts aimed at breaking the current deadlock in settlement talks.
But the government expressed pessimism about the prospects for resuming talks stalled since last Summer.
Cordovez, who arrived in the early hours, had a 3pm meeting with President Clerides before crossing to the north for a 5pm rendez-vous with Turkish Cypriot leader Rauf Denktash.
He declined to make any statements after his meeting with Clerides. “I will speak to you on Saturday,” Cordovez said, referring to a news conference scheduled for Greek and Turkish Cypriot journalists.
Government spokesman Christos Stylianides was cagey about what had been discussed during the meeting with Clerides. He said only that talks had been “on the basis of UN Security Council resolutions.”
Speaking earlier in the day, Foreign Minister Yiannakis Cassoulides said the talks would be no more than “useful”.
“We believe the talks will be useful but are not anticipating any significant outcome,” he said.
Denktash is refusing to return to face-to-face talks with Clerides unless the EU reverses its decision to begin accession talks with Cyprus and his breakaway occupation regime is granted international recognition.
Cordovez, whose last visit in March brought no tangible results, is scheduled to have breakfast with Clerides and dinner with Denktash today.
In London meanwhile, British Foreign Minister Douglas Henderson yesterday called on the government to do more to break the talks deadlock.
“The EU is looking for Cyprus to take measures to try to build a better climate to get the UN process moving again,” Henderson said after a meeting with the head of Cyprus’s EU accession talks team, George Vassiliou.
“It is crucial that progress is made and we all hope and pray that there will be progress in the coming months,” Henderson said.
Vassiliou described the meeting as “useful and positive” but added that he had rebuffed Henderson’s repetition of Britain’s demand that Cyprus cancel a controversial order for Russian-made S-300 missiles.
“We also put our position forward, pointing out that our side has sent messages that it is ready to move forward, provided Cypriots’ feeling of security is boosted,” Vassiliou said.
