President Nikos Christodoulides on Tuesday told United Nations special representative Colin Stewart he is “ready” to discuss the opening of new crossing points with Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar.

Government spokesman Konstantinos Letymbiotis said the message was conveyed by Christodoulides during a meeting with Stewart in the morning.

“We have already submitted our proposals for the crossing points, and we are waiting. We are ready at any time this meeting can take place to hold it with a constructive attitude,” Letymbiotis said.

He added that Christodoulides had put forth three potential dates for a meeting to take place and is expecting for a response through Stewart after his meeting with Tatar.

He also touched on the matter of the planned visit of UN under-secretary-general for peacebuilding Rosemary DiCarlo to the island in the early part of next year, saying she will “aim to explore the prospects for the resumption of negotiations.

“The prerequisite is already what has been decided in the presence of [UN Secretary-General Antonio] Guterres – the convening of a meeting. That is DiCarlo’s programme. We are waiting to be informed,” he said.

He also expressed the hope that “the necessary preparatory work” would be carried out so that the planned “enlarged meeting” on the Cyprus problem next year, involving at least two of Cyprus’ guarantor powers, will have the result of negotiations being resumed from the point at which they were broken off in Crans Montana in 2017.

Stewart held a meeting with Tatar later in the day, where the Turkish Cypriot leader rejected opening new crossing points in Kokkina and Athienou.

If the conditions allow, Tatar specified he had no qualms meeting with Christodoulides but there would have to be something concrete on the table.

He added that the Mia Milia crossing point is important and would be beneficial for commerce, and making crossings at Ayios Dhometios easier.

After a meeting with Tatar, the UN official said now was the best opportunity since 2017 to have positive momentum on issues that concern members of the public such as opening new crossing points.

One of the questions remaining regarding the enlarged meeting is whether the United Kingdom will be present.

New British high commissioner in Nicosia Michael Tatham had on Sunday suggested that the country would be present at such a meeting, saying the UK “takes its role as a guarantor power very seriously” and “wants to contribute as constructively as possible to the process”.

However, Tatar has come out against the idea of British involvement in such a meeting.

He had gone on the record before the informal dinner in October as having said that based on the lack of common ground found between Cyprus’ two sides, “an environment could be created for a 4+1 informal consultation.”

Since then, Christodoulides and British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer have met each other both in London and in Nicosia, with Christodoulides describing the latter’s visit to Cyprus last week as “historic”.

After the meeting in London, he said that he and Starmer are “on the same page” regarding the Cyprus problem.