ATHENS (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 03rd February, 2021) Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis will visit Cyprus on February 8 to discuss the upcoming five-sided informal meeting on Cyprus with Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades, Cypriot government spokesman Kyriakos Kousios said on Wednesday.
In November, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said that he intended to convene an informal "five plus UN meeting" with the leaders of the two Cypriot communities and the guarantor states, namely Greece, Turkey and the United Kingdom. The meeting is scheduled for early March.
"Mitsotakis will pay a working visit to Cyprus with an aim of further interaction between Nicosia and Athens in connection with an informal five-sided conference that the UN secretary-general intends to convene. During the visit, the Cypriot President and Greek prime minister will participate in negotiations as the heads of the two countries' delegations," Kousios said.
The spokesman added that, following the talks, Anastasiades would hold a working lunch with Mitsotakis and the other members of the Greek delegation.
Cyprus was split between Greek and Turkish communities in 1974 after Turkey invaded the island to protect Turkish Cypriots following an uprising of Greek Cypriots that resulted in a change of government. In 1983, the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus declared independence but has not been recognized by any other country except for Turkey. The United Nations has attempted to broker a reunification dialogue, but the effort has failed and the dialogue stalled since the last round of talks in Switzerland's Crans-Montana in 2017.
