Cyprus President Nikos Christodoulides and Turkish-Cypriot leader Tufan Erhurman concluded their first official meeting on Thursday morning in Nicosia, an encounter widely viewed as a crucial early test of whether reunification talks can resume after years of stagnation.
The meeting lasted a little over an hour and took place at the residence of Khassim Diagne, the Special Representative and Head of the United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP), located in the buffer zone near the old Nicosia airport. María Angela Holguín Cuéllar, the Personal Envoy of the UN Secretary-General for Cyprus, joined via videoconference from Lima, Peru.
UN Cyprus representative Khassim Diagne shakes hands with Cyprus President Nikos Christodoulides, who leads Cyprus’s Greek Cypriot community, and Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhurman, before a meeting in the UN buffer zone, in Nicosia, Cyprus November 20, 2025. REUTERS/Yiannis Kourtoglou
Joint meeting with UN envoy expected in December
Speaking after the meeting, Christodoulides said it was positive that both sides agreed to hold a joint meeting with Holguín when she visits Cyprus in December. He clarified that the talks were not a negotiation session.
“The Turkish-Cypriot leader raised some issues, and I raised some others,” he said, emphasizing that the exchange served as an initial step in a longer diplomatic process.
“We are entering a process with the sole objective of achieving the main goal: the resumption of negotiations from where they were interrupted,” he added.
UN issues official statement on the meeting
The United Nations released a press statement shortly after the encounter, explaining the agreed next steps:
“Today, the Greek Cypriot leader, Mr. Nikos Christodoulides, and the Turkish Cypriot leader, Mr. Tufan Erhurman, met for the first time as the leaders of the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot communities. Their meeting, facilitated by the Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Head of the United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus, took place in the United Nations Protected Area. The Personal Envoy of the Secretary-General, Ms. María Angela Holguín Cuéllar, also participated online.
The meeting provided an opportunity for the two leaders to exchange views for the first time in a cordial atmosphere.
Mr. Erhurman and Mr. Christodoulides expressed their anticipation for Ms. Holguín’s visit and agreed to hold a joint meeting with her when she arrives on the island in early December. They also expressed their willingness to work toward the next informal meeting in a wider format, to be convened by the Secretary-General.
The leaders further agreed to explore additional opportunities for joint meetings. They instructed their representatives to hold regular meetings to prepare for Ms. Holguín’s visit and, in particular, for the next informal broader meeting to be convened by the Secretary-General.”
Preparation and cautious optimism
Christodoulides arrived first, accompanied by Menelaos Menelaou, the Greek-Cypriot negotiator. Erhurman followed shortly afterward and was accompanied by Mehmet Dana, who is widely expected to be appointed as the Turkish-Cypriot side’s new negotiator
The meeting was not expected to yield instant breakthroughs, but it carried significant weight as the first direct contact between the two leaders since Erhurman took office. It served as both an introductory exchange and an opportunity to outline initial views on how to proceed with efforts to resume formal negotiations.
Before the meeting, Christodoulides said he was heading into the discussions “fully prepared” with proposals aimed at restarting talks from where they ended in Crans-Montana in 2017. He expressed hope for “positive results” that would pave the way for substantive negotiations.
Erhurman, who has emphasized his willingness to return to the negotiating table, has also urged realistic expectations. He has noted that while the broader climate, including Ankara’s stance, appears conducive to dialogue, this first encounter was not likely to produce concrete outcomes.
