‘Talks should be a Cypriot-led process’

THE UNITED States strongly believes that talks aiming to reach a Cyprus settlement “should be a Cypriot-led process”, US Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Tina Kaidanow has said.

In statements after a meeting she had yesterday with President Demetris Christofias, during her visit on the island, Kaidanow said that she had “a very-very interesting and very productive day here in Cyprus”, noting that this was her first time on the island. Kaidanow later met with Turkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat.

“I have seen a number of people, we have exchanged views on a whole range of things, including our bilateral relationship between the United States and Cyprus which is very important to us, as well as on the settlement discussions and what may come in the future and various perspectives on that”, she added.

Accompanied by US Ambassador to Cyprus Frank Urbancic, Kaidanow met with President of the House of Representatives Marios Garoyian who briefed her on developments in the Cyprus problem and talks to reach a settlement.

They also exchanged views on Turkey’s EU accession course and developments in the broader region and discussed bilateral relations between Cyprus and the US, including relations on the parliamentary level.

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.