Cyprus News Agency: News in English, 07-11-18

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From: The Cyprus News Agency at <http://www.cyna.org.cy>

CONTENTS

[01] UN SG CYPRUS - SPECIAL ADVISER

[01] UN SG CYPRUS - SPECIAL ADVISER

In report entitled ``Estimates in respect of special political missions, good offices and other political initiatives authorized by the General Assembly and/or the Security Council,`` Ban outlines the developments on Cyprus, a problem on the UN Security Council agenda for 40 years, making special reference on the July 8 agreement 2006 achieved in a meeting between Cyprus President Tassos Papadopoulos and Turkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat, in the presence of the then UN Undersecretary-General for Political Affairs Ibrahim Gambari.

The July 8 agreement involves bicommunal discussions by technical committees of issues affecting the day-to-day life of the people and, concurrently, consideration by expert working groups of substantive issues, both of which will contribute to a comprehensive settlement.

``There is broad consensus on the way forward, including preliminary agreement on the list of issues for the technical committees and the working groups. However, differences remain concerning the interpretation of the agreement, most notably on what constitutes a day-to-day matter, and the mechanism for resolving disagreements,`` Ban notes in his report, recalling Security Council resolutions 1728 (2006), 1758 (2007), which express full support for the 8 July process and called upon all parties to immediately engage constructively with the United Nations efforts and to demonstrate measurable progress in order to allow fully fledged negotiations to begin.

Noting that on September 5 President Papadopoulos and Talat met `` for the first time since July 2006,`` and ``agreed to continue their contacts through the United Nations and to meet again when appropriate,`` Ban says that ``depending on the developments on the island, in 2008, the Secretary-General may decide to appoint a Special Adviser to carry out his good offices mission at the shortest possible notice to reach a comprehensive settlement of the Cyprus problem.``

He also points out that ``both the Secretary-General and the Security Council have underlined that the responsibility of finding a solution lies first and foremost with the Cypriots themselves,`` adding that ``in that connection, civil society has been encouraged to be more actively engaged in the search for a comprehensive settlement. At the same time, the Council, in its aforementioned resolution, noted the primary role of the United Nations in assisting the parties to bring the Cyprus conflict and division of the island to a comprehensive and durable settlement.``

As regards the objectives for 2008, Ban includes a target of six meetings between the two leaders of the two communities, dialogue between the Coordination Committee (comprising the aides of the two leaders and the UN SG`s Special Representative in Cyprus) reaching 35 meetings, and the establishment of 12 committees and working groups.

He also sets a target of 150 conferences, seminars and other relevant events organized by civil society organizations engaged in the search for a comprehensive settlement and finally the ``restoration of full-fledged negotiations to reach a comprehensive settlement of the Cyprus problem,`` with four substantive issues agreed as the basis for a comprehensive settlement.

Ban notes that ``in anticipation of the appointment of a Special Adviser in 2008, the estimated requirements amounting to 298,500 dollars would provide for salaries and common staff costs for the Special Adviser and 173,100 dollars for his or her support staff as well as 124,900 for official travel.

Cyprus has been divided since 1974, when Turkey invaded and occupied its northern third.

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