NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) – Turkey’s input will be pivotal in overcoming key obstacles preventing a deal to reunify ethnically divided Cyprus, the island’s president said Friday ahead of crucial talks in Switzerland next week.
Nicos Anastasiades, a Greek Cypriot, says he and breakaway Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci have made significant progress on numerous issues making an envisioned federation workable. Those issues include ensuring the country’s economic viability and the right of all citizens to live and work wherever they choose.
But he said it’ll take the “resolute contribution” of Turkey and the Turkish Cypriot leadership to reach agreement on core issues such as security and how much territory either side will administer under an envisioned federal state.
Five days of intensive, U.N.-backed talks in the Swiss resort of Mont Pelerin will concentrate directly on territory issues. Officials say sufficient progress on this key issue would pave the way for a final summit to hammer out a comprehensive deal encompassing security matters.
U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will attend Monday’s opening session.