Alma leader Odysseas Michaelides on Sunday called for an immediate meeting of the National Council to brief political leaders on developments surrounding the Cyprus problem following contacts in New York.
In a statement, Michaelides strongly criticised President Nikos Christodoulides’ handling of the issue, accusing him of “raising expectations of progress ahead of his meetings in New York only to return without tangible results.”
Christodoulides met UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres during his visit, but a proposed three-way meeting involving Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhurman did not take place.
The two sides have since offered differing accounts of why the meeting failed to materialise.
Michaelides said Christodoulides had inherited the Cyprus problem at an impasse but argued that, “three and a half years later, the situation had deteriorated further.”
He accused the government of spending the past four months raising expectations of significant developments, including the possibility of a settlement plan by the end of the year.
Michaelides said the outcome had left the public to conclude that either expectations had deliberately been raised for communication purposes or that the government had failed to properly assess the political situation.
“We expect the immediate convening of the National Council for a full briefing on the situation left by this latest failure,” he said.
Click here to change your cookie preferences