Statements by the General Secretary of AKEL Stefanos Stefanou following his meeting with the European Commission’s Special Envoy for Cyprus, Johannes Hahn

 

12 December 2025, AKEL C.C. Press Office, Nicosia 

We had a very interesting and productive meeting with the European Union Special Representative for the Cyprus problem, Mr. Johannes Hahn. During our meeting, we discussed developments surrounding the Cyprus problem and the various issues that lie ahead.

The European Union is interested and wants to break the deadlock and continue the negotiations, and has expressed its position to assist the efforts to resolve the Cyprus problem, always of course within the framework of the UN, which indeed has the leading role in relation to the solution of the problem.

We exchanged views on various issues that need to be addressed and agreed that we will maintain and continue our contacts and discussion because it is very useful for everyone to know how the each side approaches numerous issues in view of the momentum that has been created surrounding the Cyprus problem.

Regarding yesterday’s meeting between the two leaders, President Christodoulides and Turkish Cypriot leader Mr. Erhürman, we conveyed AKEL’s position. We consider it very positive that the two leaders have met. We also consider it important because the statement made after the meeting refers to the resolutions of the UN on the Cyprus solution and, as it is well known, the UN resolutions provide for a solution of a Bi-zonal, Bi-communal Federation with political equality, for which a special reference was made after the meeting between the two leaders.

We believe that yesterday’s meeting, as well as the other meetings that will obviously take place, will help to create a dynamic that will lead to progress. Moreover, the UN Secretary-General has expressed his position that a new informal expanded meeting should be convened to discuss not only Confidence-Building Measures, but also to open the discussion on the substance of the Cyprus problem and the need to resume the negotiations from the point where they were interrupted at Crans-Montana in 2017.

In view of these facts, we consider it extremely important for the Greek Cypriot side to prepare itself adequately so that it can give substance and take specific initiatives to implement what the President of the Republic rightly proclaims, namely that our goal is to continue the negotiations from the point at which they were interrupted. This means that the meetings and the entire negotiating acquis must be safeguarded and that all efforts must be focused on resuming the negotiations, if and provided that this is achieved, in order to discuss the outstanding issues as defined by the UN Secretary-General in the framework he has drawn up.

It is therefore clear that we are facing developments. It is very important that the Greek Cypriot side has a clear plan for these developments, that we are properly prepared, and that we remain focused on the effort to achieve a solution that will end the Turkish occupation and reunite the country and its people within the framework of a bi-zonal, bi-communal federation with political equality, as described in the relevant UN resolutions.