Clerides briefs National Council on talks

By Jean Christou

PRESIDENT Clerides yesterday briefed the National Council on the first round of proximity talks in New York.

Speaking to reporters after the two-hour meeting, government spokesman Michalis Papapetrou said the National Council would meet again on January 4 so that the party leaders could come back with their views on what Clerides had told them.

“Members of the National Council asked questions to clarify certain issues and decided to continue the meeting on January 4,” Papapetrou said.

The first round of proximity talks took place in New York early this month, and the two leaders are due to resume the talks in Geneva at the end of next month.

Meanwhile American ambassador Donald Bandler yesterday issued a New Year message “to the people of Cyprus”.

He said Greece and Turkey were on the road to increased cooperation “that will radiate throughout the region”.

“This reconciliation has not been easy,” Bandler said. “The key has been dialogue and sustained public support for the hard work of negotiations. Events have shown that even in the most seemingly intractable situations, these ingredients make it possible to achieve peace”.

Bandler said that during the recent UN-led talks in New York, the US had noted that Cypriots were serious about the search for a negotiated settlement.

“My everyday contacts with people here have shown that they yearn for the time when all Cypriots will enjoy a secure and prosperous future together,” he said.

“As we look forward to the New Year and the continued talks process, I have confidence that Cyprus will join Greece and Turkey, Ireland and the Middle East in showing that it is possible to settle differences and build a durable peace.”

The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.