President Nikos Christodoulides was not “invited” to a tripartite meeting with Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar and United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on August 13 but “sounded out” over such a meeting, government spokesman Konstantinos Letymbiotis said on Monday.

Speaking on Monday morning about Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar’s vow to not attend such a meeting should it be organised, he said Guterres’ had “made a proposal” for a meeting to be held and repeated that “[Christodoulides] … said he had been sounded out”.

He added that he hoped Tatar would change his mind and attend such a meeting should it be held.

Tatar was quick to fire back on Monday afternoon, however, telling the Cyprus Turkish News Agency (Tak) that Christodoulides is “using Guterres as a tool”.

“The Greek Cypriot leader has fallen into great despair, especially after Holguin submitted her report and ended her term as representative. She determined that there was no common ground,” he began.

He also lambasted what he described as “the most unacceptable audacity” on the part of Christodoulides in saying Tatar’s rejection of a meeting had “shown contempt to the Turkish Cypriots”.

He said Christodoulides “has started to insult not only me but also my people.”

“My message to the Greek Cypriot people is to not be fooled by the Greek Cypriot leader’s statements that negotiations will continue where they left off. Let them not be fooled, because these statements are both baseless and far from reality.”

Letymbiotis was asked about the matter of whether or not plans had been made for a meeting by the Cyprus Mail after reports in the Turkish Cypriot press on Sunday that the UN had denied either leader had been invited to attend a tripartite meeting.

UN spokesman Farhan Haq told the Cyprus Mail, “as far as I am aware, no invitations have been sent.”

Letymbiotis said this just meant no formal invite had been sent by the UN and that both Christodoulides and Tatar would have been “sounded out” over the prospect of a meeting.

Christodoulides, he said, “has been frequently in contact with Guterres of late”.

He said they had met and spoke in Paris last week when they were both in the city for the Olympic Games opening ceremony, and that in this and other conversations between the two, the sounding out over a potential meeting occurred.

“There was a sounding out and we reached a stage where there were three days on the table. We chose August 13 as it seemed to us to be the most suitable day,” he said.

He added that Tatar had also been sounded out over the prospect, “and very publicly gave his answer today [Sunday], that he is refusing to meet”.

Asked about whether Christodoulides and Tatar had been “sounded out” over a meeting, Farhan Haq told the Cyprus Mail “I have nothing further to say.”

“We will say when formal invitations are sent,” he added.

Christodoulides had announced the planned meeting on Saturday night, saying it had come about thanks to “our own persistent efforts, both in the direction of [Guterres] and the European Union”.

He went on to say he had been “working tirelessly to break the deadlock” which had seen the Cyprus problem unmoved since the collapse of talks at Crans-Montana in 2017.

However, Tatar responded on Sunday morning saying that he had not been invited to such a meeting, and that even if he had been invited, he would not attend.

“There is no invitation from [Guterres] for a for a trilateral meeting. In any case, under the current conditions, we would not acquiesce to a trilateral meeting. There is no basis for such a meeting. Our stance on the conditions under which negotiations can begin is clear,” he said.

He added that negotiations “cannot begin” until the north’s “sovereign equality and equal international status are recognised”, and said, “the Greek Cypriots are once again playing games.”

Speaking to CyBC radio on Monday morning, Letymbiotis said it was not the first time Tatar had said he would not attend meetings with the UN, and the government was waiting to hear of the UN’s next steps.

“Under these circumstances, it is considered extremely difficult for the UN secretary-general to send invitations to a meeting, when there is already the given refusal from Tatar, who left no room if all his demands are not met,” he said.

Letymbiotis’ words left Disy MP and former presidential candidate Averof Neofytou less than impressed, however.

In a social media post, he said, “I supported [Christodoulides’] positive response to the invitation (sounding out) sent by [Guterres]. I warned us not to engage in Tatar’s game of ‘will I go or not’ and ‘was I invited or not’.”

“Unfortunately, before you could speak, we have fallen into their trap in a way that leaves us exposed to the international community. Take caution. Communication tricks for internal consumption harm the national cause,” he added.

At the same time, former Turkish Cypriot ‘prime minister’ Ferdi Sabit Soyer said Tatar had fallen into Christodoulides’ trap while speaking to Kibris Postasi TV.

“Guterres made an experiment for August. That is why he made this unofficial offer. Christodoulides publicised it to make things go to waste and spare himself from criticism. It is an attempt to destroy [Guterres’] goodwill effort by saying ‘I want it and they do not’, and Ersin Tatar fell into this trap,” he said.