Lute to hold fifth round of meetings on Thursday (update 3)

UN envoy Jane Holl Lute will hold a fifth round of meetings with leaders on Thursday, after efforts to agree the terms of reference for the resumption of Cyprus talks hit a snag on the co-governance issue, reports said on Wednesday.

According to the Turkish Cypriot spoeksman, Lute will meet with Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci at 9.30am on Thursday and with President Nicos Anastasiades at 11.30am.

On Wednesday evening, Anastasiades said: “Our goal is to shape the terms of reference, which will allow for the restart of a constructive dialogue.”

Asked if there is outside involvement in setting the terms of reference, the president said he would not comment further on the consultations as they were ongoing.

Reports about the hitch emerged following the fourth meeting between Anastasiades and UN envoy Jane Holl Lute in the morning.

They said the complication concerned certain issues linked to co-governance the Turkish Cypriot side wanted to include in the text of the terms of reference, something the Greek Cypriot side does not consider constructive.

Government spokesman Prodromos Prodromou would not say whether there was a problem in the morning.

He told reporters the one-hour meeting was productive and that efforts to agree on the terms continued.

Lute met Akinci later in the morning. After an hour-long meeting, his spokesman Baris Burcu said that meetings with Lute would continue for a little longer.

Agreeing on the terms will first pave the way for a meeting of the two leaders with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in New York later this month on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly. He will then decide whether to officially invite the sides to new negotiations.

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