Cyprus News Agency: News in English (AM), 97-11-21

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From: The Cyprus News Agency at <http://www.cyna.org.cy>

CONTENTS

[01] UN top envoy meets ambassadors of big "5"

[02] UN chief hopes for resumption of Cyprus talks

1300:CYPPRESS:01

[01] UN top envoy meets ambassadors of big "5"

Speaking after the meeting, which took place at the British High Commission in Nicosia, Cordovez said it "was an exchange of information, which is always very useful".

He added he was "very happy because the international community is showing enormous concern about this, and I have told the two leaders that they have to take advantage of that".

Cordovez stressed "there is no purpose in always saying what about the other one".

Asked if he is optimistic, Cordovez said "I am a compulsive optimist".

US Ambassador, Kenneth Brill, said the meeting was "a chance to catch up on what Mr. Cordovez has done on his visit and his talks here".

He also said "it was very useful and we all appreciated it".

Present at the meeting was also UN resident representative Gustave Feissel.

The UN top envoy was giving a bicommunal press conference about the outcome of his Cyprus talks with President Glafcos Clerides and Turkish Cypriot leader Rauf Denktash.

CNA RG/GP/1997

ENDS, CYPRUS NEWS AGENCY

1330:CYPPRESS:02

[02] UN chief hopes for resumption of Cyprus talks

This was stated here today by the UN Secretary-General's Special Advisor on Cyprus, Diego Cordovez, during a press conference at the end of his three-day fact finding mission to the island.

Cordovez referred to a message he had brought to President Glafcos Clerides and Turkish Cypriot leader, Rauf Denktash from the Secretary- General.

In his opening remarks, the UN top envoy said "the SG wanted me to come here at this point to tell the two leaders that his concern remains as vivid as it was in the 27th of January", he said.

The second message, he added, is that "he (Annan) would very much, he earnestly hopes, that the original schedule he had suggested, that is to say that the idea that the negotiations should start immediately after the elections, should remain and is still valid", Cordovez said.

"The UN Secretary-General hopes the two leaders still agree with that idea," the UN envoy said.

Number three, he added, is that Annan "feels very strongly that at this point it is important that they implement the proposal he made when he opened the talks in Troutbeck (in July in the US) concerning the procedure that will be used for the negotiation".

He clarified the procedure provides that they will start after the elections, and there will be "a continuing process, a sustained process".

"There will be a negotiating process which will hopeful start in March and will continue until a settlement is reached".

The UN official said that period should be as "short as possible. It cannot be very long because the whole thing will start to crumble and might collapse", he warned.

Cordovez said there should be regular negotiating sessions, where they will adopt an incremental approach, which means the negotiations reach a certain point "where you think about a point, you consult and come back and take it from there and move forward".

Cordovez expressed gratitude to Denktash for postponing an operation in Turkey to meet him. "We had many hours of useful talks", he said.

He also said he was grateful to President Clerides for the time he gave him. The two had met twice.

The two leaders, according to Cordovez, reacted "very positively" to his message.

He stressed that at this point, he is not asking them to answer anything because the UN realises the current circumstances, that is the election process, and the fact that Denktash "wants to know what is happening with the European Union", according to Cordovez.

The UN envoy said he would return to Cyprus immediately after the elections, in order to consider the initiative of the Secretary-General. "I am confident that we can then start the negotiating process."

Cordovez stressed that the international community "is now extremely concerned" about Cyprus, "to a degree which has no precedent".

He referred to the big number of people appointed by governments as their envoys, "to help me, and I am very grateful for that expression of concern".

Cordovez said he told the two leaders that they have to understand the concern of the international community, "is not going to last forever".

He called on the media to help him "get the public opinion from both communities to move in this. We need very wide, strong support from the two communities". (More later)

CNA EC/GP/1997

ENDS, CYPRUS NEWS AGENCY

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