UN Secretary-General Guterres announces plans for a 5+1 meeting on Cyprus

Following a two-day visit to Cyprus that concluded on July 29, 2026, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres announced his decision to convene an informal 5+1 meeting to address the Cyprus issue. This breakthrough followed a critical phone conversation with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, which provided the necessary political consensus from all involved parties to move forward.

During his visit, Guterres held productive meetings with President Nikos Christodoulides and Turkish-Cypriot leader Tufan Erhurman. While the Secretary-General confirmed the commitment to the 5+1 format, he explicitly stated that no specific date has been set. He emphasized that the meeting will only occur after thorough preparation regarding confidence-building measures, methodology, and substantive content, aiming to avoid past failures like the 2017 Crans-Montana talks. Guterres stressed that the process must build upon existing convergences rather than starting from scratch.

This initiative serves to revitalize the stalled negotiation process. While the announcement represents a diplomatic step forward, stakeholders remain cautious. Local sources indicate that the path remains fragile, with disagreements over the form of a solution still unresolved. The focus now shifts to the required preparatory work by both communities and guarantor powers to create the conditions necessary for a successful conference.