Eide: ‘Support leaders during negotiations’

UN Secretary-General’s Special Adviser on Cyprus, Espen Barth Eide, said that he is very pleased with the course of the negotiations that are being conducted in order to solve the Cyprus problem, however he said that the two communities should also support the leaders during the process.

Eide came together with Bi-communal Famagusta Initiative (BFI) activists yesterday evening and talked with them about the negotiations and a possible settlement.

Espen Barth Eide said that it was a great pleasure meeting with Bi-communal Famagusta Initiative (BFI) members and that he had been following them from a distance, however, he wanted to visit them on site and listen to what they think of the process.

Stating that the negotiations are making successful progress and that he feels very assured thanks to this, Eide said: ‘Beside the fact that both leaders trust each other, they are concentrating on the big picture, rather than going into little details that brought the negotiations to a halt before.’

Stating that the opinions that have been expressed in the meeting with BFI can speed up the process, Eide said: ‘seeing that a civil society initiative is deeply engaged is not only important, but also an incentive for me. Settlement of the Cyprus problem is for the good of all Cypriots. The leaders are conducting the process and it is very important, because they have been elected democratically. On the other hand, the two communities should also support the leaders. Politicians can help the process, however, they cannot do everything on their own. I am saying these based on my experiences as a former politician’.