British urge expert help

THE BRITISH government wants to see the two leaders make use of their agreement in Geneva and enlist the help of UN experts to overcome the impasse on property, said Britain’s Europe Minister David Lidington.

Speaking after a meeting with three of The Elders in London on Friday, Lidington said: “As I have said before, difficult choices will have to be made by both sides but I very much welcome and I am encouraged by the recent agreement of both leaders to consider technical support from UN experts on property issues.”

He added that the UK “very much hopes that such support will provide fresh thinking for negotiations on this issue, and strongly encourages further work by both parties”.

Lidington met with the three Elders to discuss their impressions of the Cyprus situation following their recent visit to the island. During his trip here, Archbishop of South Africa Desmond Tutu said the group were much less upbeat than before and even “disappointed”.

During a tripartite meeting in Geneva last month, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon encouraged the two sides to talk to UN experts on the technical aspects of the property issue. According to official sources, the Turkish Cypriot negotiating team prefers the idea of UN experts sitting down with both sides and giving ideas on how to overcome the impasse. The Greek Cypriots, however, have resisted such efforts, constantly working to avoid any hint of arbitration or mediation by the UN.

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.