Cyprus

Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades and Turkish-Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci will hold talks on Tuesday ahead of an international conference in Geneva on January 12 as disagreement remains on the issue of security in an envisioned federal Cyprus.

Shipowner Michalis Zolotas, accused of bribery and other crimes, will be extradited to Cyprus to stand trial, according to a decision by Greece's Supreme Court on Friday.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan is ready to "play ball" on reaching a deal to reunify divided Cyprus because it would help resolve overarching regional issues including mending Turkey's relations with the European Union, a United Nations envoy said Dec. 8.

It is not yet certain when the two people of Cyprus will be asked to go to separate simultaneous referenda to vote on an agreement uniting the divided island in a bi-zonal and bi-communal federation. Indeed, as for now, it is not certain either if there ever will be an accord to crown the almost 50 years of intercommunal talks.

The Cyprus issue is not independent of the Syrian issue. But while the imperialist intervention that has dragged Syria and Iraq into civil war and divided both still continues, the Cyprus talks have accelerated. 

Greece, Cyprus and Israel signed a memorandum of cooperation in research and development in Jerusalem Thursday in a bid to strengthen trilateral ties. The formation of a regional emergency force was also discussed.

Greece, Israel and Cyprus were set to forge closer ties in the fields of energy and civil protection, among others, following agreements signed during a tripartite summit of the countries' leaders in Jerusalem on Thursday.

The first month of 2017 will be vital for the Cyprus peace talks with negotiations set to resume in Geneva following a failure last month, Turkish Cypriot President Mustafa Akıncı has said.

In a village in northern Cyprus, a community struggling to save its ancient language has seen a glimmer of hope in intensified efforts to reunify the divided island.

There was a half-day general strike on Monday in Northern Cyprus. It was aimed at serving as a warning to the center-right coalition government of Prime Minister Hüseyin Özgürgün, accused of mismanagement and incompetency.