Tripartite Cyprus meeting in New York collapses

Diplomatic efforts to organize a tripartite meeting regarding the Cyprus issue in New York have ended in failure. During the ongoing UN General Assembly, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed a desire to host a joint meeting between Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides and Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhurman. While President Christodoulides officially accepted the proposal, the Turkish Cypriot side rejected the initiative, preventing the meeting from taking place.

Following this development, President Christodoulides will not extend his stay in the United States and is scheduled to return to Cyprus by Saturday evening, September 26, 2026, as per his original itinerary. Government sources confirmed that no further negotiations are expected during this trip, and analysts note that without progress at this session, further informal meetings remain unlikely before the end of Guterres' term. Former DISY leader Averof Neofytou noted that the failure was predictable, as no consensus had been reached on even minor confidence-building measures.

Tufan Erhurman, who held separate meetings with Guterres' personal envoy Maria Angela Holguin and other international representatives during his visit, is expected to return to the occupied areas on September 27. The rejection effectively concludes the current attempt to revitalize formal negotiations, leaving the status of the Cyprus peace process in a state of renewed stagnation.