Turkish Cypriot President Tufan Erhürman has said he remains committed to UN efforts to resolve the Cyprus problem after meeting Secretary-General António Guterres in New York (pictured top). Their talks followed conflicting claims about why a proposed meeting with Greek Cypriot leader Nikos Christodoulides did not take place.
Erhürman met Guterres on Saturday, 26 September, during the opening week of the UN General Assembly. He had also met the Secretary-General’s personal envoy for Cyprus, María Ángela Holguín, as well as the heads of the Organisation of Turkic States and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation. His undersecretary, Mehmet Dânâ, held separate talks with senior UN officials and diplomats from several countries.
The visit was overshadowed by reports that Erhürman had rejected a three-way meeting with Guterres and Christodoulides. The Greek Cypriot leader said he had presented new proposals on negotiations and confidence-building measures to Guterres, and that “the Turkish side responded negatively” to the prospect of meeting together.
TRNC President Tufan Erhuman and UNSG Cyprus envoy María Ángela Holguín, Sep. 2026.
Erhürman disputes the suggestion that he vetoed a meeting requested by the UN chief. He said no three-way meeting had been scheduled before the delegations arrived in New York. According to his account, Christodoulides raised the idea with Guterres, after which Holguín conveyed it to the Turkish Cypriot side. Erhürman said he asked whether there was a commitment to substantive progress that would give such a meeting a useful purpose, and received no positive answer. He maintains that he is open to future meetings if they are properly prepared.
After his own meeting with Guterres, Erhürman put his objection to the reports more sharply: “If the secretary-general wanted a tripartite meeting and I refused it, there would be no meeting with the secretary-general.”
TRNC President Tufan Erhürman meets with the General Secretary of the Organisation of Islamic Co-operation (OIC) Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed in New York, Sep. 2026
The UN envoy’s account clarifies the sequence, though it does not erase the disagreement. Holguín said a three-way meeting was not initially planned for New York; Christodoulides proposed one during the week, and Erhürman did not consider it appropriate at this stage. Her account supports Erhürman’s point that he had not withdrawn from a scheduled meeting, while confirming that the late proposal did not gain his agreement.
Erhürman said his discussion with Guterres focused largely on confidence-building measures. He says the Turkish Cypriot side accepted six of seven proposals discussed with the UN, while the question of new crossing points remains unresolved. Holguín has urged both leaders to implement measures already agreed, saying practical cooperation would demonstrate their willingness to move towards a sustainable settlement. She plans to return to Cyprus in October.
Letter urged diplomats to avoid Turkish Cypriot representatives
A separate dispute emerged over efforts to limit the Turkish Cypriot delegation’s contacts in New York. The Cyprus Mail reported seeing a letter from the Republic of Cyprus’s permanent mission to the UN asking other diplomatic missions to “refrain from any contact or meetings” with representatives it described as belonging to a “secessionist entity”. The letter invoked UN Security Council resolutions and alleged that the representatives were seeking meetings to promote secessionist policies.
Erhürman criticised the approach as damaging to trust, saying the Greek Cypriot side wanted to be the only one explaining the Cyprus issue to international partners. The request did not prevent Dânâ from meeting UN Under-Secretary-General Rosemary DiCarlo and representatives of Pakistan, Switzerland, Russia and France. He also joined a discussion with his Greek Cypriot counterpart, Menelaos Menelaou, and UN officials.
TRNC President Tufan Erhürman meets with the General Secretary of the Organisation of of Turkic States Kubanychbek Omuraliev in New York, Sep. 2026
The letter has drawn criticism even from Turkish Cypriots who strongly favour a negotiated settlement. Pro-solution activist Kemal Baykallı wrote on social media that the Christodoulides administration was “intentionally alienating the pro-solution Turkish Cypriot leadership”, adding: “We outvoted our secessionist leader. You need to outvote yours.”
The immediate test now lies back on the island: whether the two leaders can make progress on crossing points and other practical measures before Holguín’s next visit. For Erhürman, those steps are also a test of whether the parties can build enough trust to make a renewed negotiation worthwhile.
