Cyprus leaders agree to meet weekly on reunification

Cyprus's rival leaders agreed on Wednesday to meet weekly as the United Nations tries to restart long-stalled talks on reunifying the divided island.

Nikos Christodoulides, president of the internationally recognised Republic of Cyprus in the south, met Tufan Erhurman, leader of the Turkish-speaking north, in Cyprus's UN-controlled buffer zone on Aug. 26. It was their first face-to-face meeting since UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres visited the island in July.

A brief UN statement after the talks described the discussions as constructive and said the leaders had agreed to intensify their meetings, including weekly sessions and more frequent meetings if needed.

Guterres said last month that he would convene new talks with the island's leaders and the three guarantor powers: Greece, Turkey and Britain. He did not set a date and said he did not want more summits without results, calling for adequate preparation.

Cyprus government spokesperson Konstantinos Letymbiotis said earlier Wednesday that the discussions would focus on the substance of the Cyprus issue. He also said new crossing points across the buffer zone were being considered as a confidence-building measure.

Cyprus has been divided since 1974. The north declared independence as the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus in 1983, but it is recognised only by Ankara; the Republic of Cyprus in the south is an EU member. The last major peace talks collapsed in Crans-Montana, Switzerland, in July 2017.