President Nikos Christodoulides said on Tuesday he is in close contact with senior European Union officials attending the Nato summit in Turkey, as discussions continue over linking progress on the Cyprus problem to EU-Turkey relations.

Speaking in Nicosia, Christodoulides rejected suggestions that time was running out to achieve progress on the Cyprus issue.

“We do not feel there is a pressing deadline,” he said. “If it were possible, we would like to see substantive developments towards a Cyprus settlement even tomorrow.”

The president said the current diplomatic momentum was the result of his own initiatives, highlighting what he described as growing European Union engagement in the process.

He said he remained in contact, particularly with President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, over discussions taking place alongside the Nato summit and expressed hope they would produce positive results.

Christodoulides also referred to an upcoming dinner involving Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, President of the European Council António Costa and von der Leyen, saying he could not predict its outcome.

However, he said he was confident both Costa and von der Leyen would convey Cyprus’ longstanding position that progress in EU-Turkey relations should be linked to positive developments on the Cyprus issue.

“Everything depends on Turkey’s behaviour and on what President Erdogan says,” Christodoulides said, adding that Nicosia, the European Commission and the European Council were “moving within the same framework”.

He revealed that he had exchanged messages with von der Leyen on Monday and that the two had agreed to speak by telephone later on Tuesday.

Asked about the latest United Nations report, which referred to three Greek Cypriots allegedly firing at UN peacekeepers, Christodoulides said UN reports had historically sought to maintain a balance between the two sides.

“If they write something negative about one side, they will find something to write about the other. This is not something new; it has happened over time,” he said.

The president said he remained focused on what he described as the “essence” of the report, that there is renewed momentum on the Cyprus issue after years of stagnation, driven in part by the Republic’s diplomatic efforts.

Responding to questions about the report’s references to confidence-building measures, Christodoulides said the current focus was not on such measures but on efforts to restart formal negotiations.

He said the UN secretary-general’s personal envoy had informed both leaders during her last visit to Cyprus that the priority remained addressing the core issues of the Cyprus problem with the aim of resuming settlement talks.