UN Secretary-General Ban Ki- moon on Monday met with Dervis Eroglu, the Turkish Cypriot leader, to discuss the Cyprus problem, and he encouraged Eroglu to grasp the current political opportunity to reach a settlement on reunifying the island of Cyprus, Xinhua reported.
"The secretary-general encouraged Mr. Eroglu to grasp the current political window of opportunity to reach a settlement," said a readout from the UN Spokesperson's Office. "He hoped that the two leaders would make serious advances in the coming months, understanding that this would require compromises on both sides."
Cyprus has been split since a Turkish invasion in 1974, that followed a brief Greek-inspired coup in Nicosia. The north now runs its own affairs in a de facto state only recognized by Turkey. The south is the officially recognized government, and a full member of the European Union.
"Eroglu expressed his commitment to finding a settlement, noting that he believed that it could achieved by late 2010 with goodwill, a spirit of give and take, and reciprocal political will and compromise," the readout said.
In late May, the secretary-general welcomed the resumption of talks that aim to reunify the Mediterranean island country of Cyprus, urging both the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot leaders to be guided by the spirit of give-and-take in their negotiations.
On June 23, Eroglu and his Turkish Cypriot counterpart held another round of talks aimed at reunifying the Mediterranean island of Cyprus, a United Nations official said, with discussions focused this time on property issues.
Earlier this month, the secretary-general appointed Lisa Buttenheim of the United States as his special representative and top United Nations official in Cyprus, where the UN-backed talks are being held in a bid to reunify the island country.