Statements by the President of the Republic

The appointment of the United Nations Secretary-General’s envoy will go into effect as of the 1st of the new year, said the President of the Republic, Mr Nikos Christodoulides, today.

In statements to the Media, the President of the Republic said that he agrees with certain decisions of the European Council, such as Ukraine’s and some other countries’ EU course, but he expressed his disagreement and concern about the way certain decisions were taken, as well as about the fact that that it was not possible to reach conclusions on the Middle East issue.

He added that “we are sending a very wrong message to the region and that is why I spoke to some of our partners in the Mediterranean countries so that we can start preparing for the day after the war. Because if we do not start discussing about this and if we do not agree on a framework and basic principles, I fear that this situation will either be repeated or will continue.” President Christodoulides noted that the EU has an obligation and a responsibility to have a leading role in the region.

Responding to a question for Cyprus’ proposal for the humanitarian maritime corridor for Gaza, he said that there are developments to this end and that there may be some announcements later today. He noted that an Israeli team has arrived in Cyprus, and a new team is expected to arrive in the following days. He said: “We are ready to send humanitarian aid as soon as there is green light from Israel. The situation is tragic, especially for civilians.”

When asked regarding the arrival of the UN Secretary-General’s envoy for Cyprus, the President of the Republic said, ‘We are awaiting the Secretary-General’s announcements. As far as I have been informed, the appointment will go into effect on the first day of the new year.” He noted that immediately after, the envoy will visit New York to meet with the UN Secretary-General, and after that, he will travel to Cyprus. Mr Christodoulides added, that considering his previous experience with various envoys and advisors “the envoy should come to Cyprus not just for 24 or 48 hours but should rather come here and spend time working with us.” The President noted: “Of course the envoy will visit Ankara, London, Athens, Brussels but should spend time in Cyprus so that conditions are formed, through discussions, to reach the desired goal, which is the resumption of talks, based on an agreed framework.”

(ASP/NZ) 

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