Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhurman on Monday renewed his call upon President Nikos Christodoulides to meet him once a week so as to complete what he described as the “homework” set by United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres during his visit to the island last week.

He said that Guterres’ statements at the end of last week’s tripartite meeting were “clear enough that they do not require any discussion or interpretation”, and stressed that “if a five-plus-one meeting is desired, there are clear homework assignments for Nicosia”.

“What did we say? As we left the meeting, in front of Guterres, we said that we are ready to meet Christodoulides once a week. We also said this in the press conference we held immediately after the meeting,” he said.

He added that on both sides of the island, “those who say, ‘we want a solution too, but…’ and those who say, ‘let’s start here, let’s start there’ are actually thinking that either we should not start at all, or that we should start but the process is what matters, and that we should have a process and not a result, are all talking in vain”.

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“We are proceeding step by step. The homework is so clear that it leaves no room for debate. We are ready within the framework of our people’s will for a solution, and we have clearly stated that we are ready. The rest is just empty talk,” he said.

Guterres had said after last week’s tripartite meeting that a new enlarged meeting on the Cyprus problem will be convened “after adequate progress”is achieved on the matters of confidence-building measures, the meeting’s methodology, and the substance of the talks. This is the “homework” to which Erhurman has since referred.

That meeting, also referred to as a “five-plus-one” meeting, will involve the island’s two sides, its three guarantor powers, Greece, Turkey, and the United Kingdom, and the UN.

Last week’s tripartite meeting produced no concrete agreement on the opening of new crossing points to connect the island’s two sides, with talks stalling over whether or not to break up the package of four crossing points agreed upon by all sides at the most recent enlarged meeting in New York last year. 

On this matter, the Greek Cypriot side proposed removing Louroujina, northwest of Larnaca, from the package of four, instead opening crossing points near Athienou, and in the eastern Nicosia suburbs of Mia Milia and Aglandjia, and the Turkish Cypriot side flatly refused to entertain any discussions which did not include all four agreed upon locations.

Prospective crossing points in Athienou and Aglandjia would create a transit road for Greek Cypriot motorists travelling between Nicosia and Athienou, who, due to the shape of the Green Line, which skirts south of Louroujina, currently have to travel via Larnaca to reach the capital.

Erhurman’s call for weekly meetings echoed an agreement reached by then acting president Glafcos Clerides and Turkish Cypriot leader of the day Rauf Denktash when then UN secretary-general Kurt Waldheim visited the island in August 1974.

At the time, Waldheim described the leaders’ agreement to hold weekly meetings as “a limited step”, but acknowledged it as “a very encouraging sign for the future”.