The leaders and the representatives of Turkish Cypriot and Greek Cypriot political parties participating in the bi-communal dialogue under the auspices of the Embassy of the Slovak Republic in South Lefkoşa met for their regular meeting at the Ledra Palace on Thursday.

A joint communique issued at the end of the meeting hosted by the Greek Cypriot Democratic Party (DIKO) highlighted the need for the resumption of negotiations under the UN umbrella as soon as possible.

Leaders and representatives of Turkish Cypriot and Greek Cypriot political parties gathered at the Ledra Palace Hotel located in the UN buffer zone on Thursday for their regular meeting hosted by the Slovak Embassy in South Cyprus.

In line with the established practice a joint communiqué was issued after the meeting.

The communiqué expressed the view that the people on both sides should be brought together actively and should be made aware of the security dilemma that lies at the heart of the Cyprus issue.

“Actions taken by the one community, in order to increase its own security cause reactions from the other, which in turn leads to a decrease rather than an increase in the original community’s security,” the communiqué read.

Delegates exchanged ideas on the Cyprus problem, recognizing that the security aspect of the Cyprus issue is one of vital importance for both communities and consequently action should be taken by both sides in order to ensure that security concerns of each community are recognised by the other.

Additionally, the delegates reaffirmed their position that the present status quo and the lack of negotiations are not acceptable and expressed willingness for cultivating a positive climate for a swift resumption of talks under the UN auspices with special emphasis on security issues including concerns of both communities.

The next meeting will be held on Wednesday June 28 2023 with the Democrat Party (DP) as hosting party.