This week, a new series of important diplomatic meetings is taking place in Cyprus. It is the most serious effort in years to restart the peace process, which has been stopped for a long time. The United Nations is organizing the talks. Negotiators from the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot sides will first meet to prepare. Their work will lead to a key joint meeting with the island's two leaders and the UN Secretary-General's Personal Envoy, María Ángela Holguín. Because a senior European Union envoy is also visiting at the same time, there is careful hope that progress might be possible.
The current efforts became more active when Envoy Holguín arrived last Thursday. Since then, she has been busy with shuttle diplomacy, meeting separately with Greek Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides and Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhurman. Her goal is to understand their political will and find areas where they agree. She hopes this can lead to formal negotiations, which have not happened since talks failed in 2017.
The process is now moving forward step by step. The negotiators, Menelaos Menelaou and Mehmet Dana, will meet on Wednesday morning. They will prepare for the main event: a three-way meeting on Thursday. At that meeting, the two Cypriot leaders will sit down together with Envoy Holguín. In a separate gesture to build trust, the leaders will also make a joint visit to the Committee on Missing Persons. This organization deals with the tragic humanitarian issue of people who disappeared during the island's division.
Adding to the importance of this moment, the EU's envoy for Cyprus, Johannes Hahn, will be on the island at the same time as Thursday's meeting. The EU's role is significant because the Republic of Cyprus is an EU member. A Greek Cypriot spokesman called Hahn's visit a "fortunate coincidence," showing the wide international interest in a solution.
Before the talks, President Christodoulides will meet with his country's political leaders on Friday. The shared hope is that Thursday's meeting will be the "decisive first step" back to real negotiations. However, experts warn that while talking again is essential, the road to a final peace agreement is still very difficult. Major disagreements on power-sharing, security, and property remain.
The combined presence of UN and EU envoys shows the world is focusing on Cyprus again. People are not expecting a solution this week. Instead, they are looking for a true commitment from the leaders to move from these preparations into serious, structured talks. The island is now waiting to see if this week's diplomatic activity can create lasting momentum for peace.