The leaders of Cyprus' two communities met on Friday to continue their reunification talks and agreed to speed up the negotiations on a weekly basis.
"The leaders had further discussions today on the powers of the federal government and they made progress," said Alexander Downer, special adviser to the U.N. secretary general on the Cyprus issue.
Greek Cypriot leader Demetris Christofias and Turkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat held a one-hour private meeting before they were joined by senior aides for more talks on power-sharing, Downer told reporters.
Christofias and Talat agreed to meet on a weekly basis and their next meeting is to be held on Oct. 13, said Downer.
The two leaders made no statements after their talks in the U.N.-controlled buffer zone in Nicosia.
Friday's meeting took place amid media reports that the talks remained at a stalemate as the two sides were still far apart on the future federal government structure and power-sharing.
Archbishop Desmond Tutu, former U.S. President Jimmy Carter and former Algerian Foreign Minister Lakhdar Brahimi have just visited the island which has been divided into a Greek Cypriot south and Turkish Cypriot north since 1974.
On Thursday, they urged Christofias and Talat to grasp the opportunity in the reunification process and work hard for a peaceful settlement of the decades-old Cyprus problem.
Source: Xinhua
|
Comment
Tell A Friend
Print Format
Save Article