NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) 鈥 Chances of restarting formal talks to mend Cyprus鈥 decades-long ethnic division appeared dimmer Wednesday as the leader of the breakaway Turkish Cypriots told a U.N. envoy that he saw no common ground with Greek Cypriots for a return to negotiations.
Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar said that he conveyed to the U.N. secretary general鈥檚 personal envoy, Mar铆a 脕ngela Holgu铆n Cu茅llar, that talks can鈥檛 happen unless separate Turkish Cypriot sovereignty in the island鈥檚 northern third first gains the same international recognition as the Cyprus republic in the Greek Cypriot south.
Tatar was quoted by Turkish Cypriot media as saying that a permanent Turkish military presence coupled with military intervention rights are prerequisites to any peace deal, despite Greek Cypriot attempts to 鈥渞emove Turkey鈥 from the settlement equation.
Tatar also expressed irritation with Holgu铆n鈥檚 contacts with civil society groups that support an accord that would reunify Cyprus as a federation made up of Turkish Cypriot and Greek Cypriot zones, in line with a U.N.-endorsed framework.
The majority of Greek Cypriots reject a deal that would formalize a partition through a two-state deal, the permanent stationing of Turkish troops on the island, the right for Turkey to militarily intervene as well a demand for a Turkish Cypriot veto on all federal-level government decisions.
The Turkish Cypriot leader鈥檚 remarks don鈥檛 waver from a line that he鈥檚 consistently kept since his 2022 rise to power. But the fact that he remains unyielding despite four months of Holgu铆n鈥檚 shuttle diplomacy doesn鈥檛 bode well for a talks restart.
Holgu铆n was appointed at the start of the year to determine what the chances are of resuming formal talks seven years after the last major push for a deal collapsed amid much acrimony.
An agreement has defied numerous, U.N.-facilitated rounds of talks since 1974 when the island was cleaved along ethnic lines following a Turkish invasion preceded by a coup aimed at uniting the island with Greece. Only Turkey recognizes a Turkish Cypriot declaration of independence, and although Cyprus is a European Union member, only the south enjoys full membership benefits.
Holgu铆n has refrained from speaking at length about her contacts over the last few months, but she noted in an interview with Kathimerini newspaper that it was up to the leaders to 鈥渓isten to the people鈥 and that she had been surprised at Tatar鈥檚 rejection of her proposal for a three-way meeting with Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides.
Holgu铆n will 鈥渟oon鈥 prepare a report for U.N. Secretary-General Ant贸nio Guterres about her findings over the last five months, according to U.N. deputy spokesman Farhan Haq.
Christodoulides struck a more upbeat note on Wednesday, saying that efforts for a resumption of talks continue and that time should be given for diplomacy to work.
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Edith M. Lederer contributed to this story from the United Nations.
