A return to negotiations is a necessity, said the US Ambassador

The US is clear in its support for a return to the negotiating table, for a Bizonal Bicommunal Federation with political equality, US Ambassador Julie Fisher said. The ambassador spoke of the "necessity" of restarting the talks on the Cyprus issue, after her meeting with the President of the Democratic Alarm, Annita Dimitriou, at the DISY offices on Friday.

"We had a nice opportunity to exchange views on a range of issues of great importance to the US and Cyprus," he said of the meeting with Mrs. Dimitriou.

"We had the opportunity to have a good discussion about the importance, the necessity, better, of resuming the talks on the Cyprus Issue", he underlined. "The US is clear in its support for a return to the negotiating table, in favor of a Bizonal Bicommunal Federation with political equality," he noted.

Ms. Fischer said the importance of coordination between the two states to support Ukraine, to counter Russia's war, to end the war in Ukraine, was also discussed. "I think these efforts are extremely important. We are grateful for the cooperation we have with the Republic of Cyprus on a huge range of issues related to it", he said.

The Ambassador welcomed the close cooperation on issues related to "special financial penalties against individuals and entities" and stated that the support from all over Cyprus in this effort was extremely important "and that is why we look forward to this cooperation".

She also expressed her support for the leadership of the Republic of Cyprus, "as we work together to protect our citizens, advance the interests of our citizens", making particular reference to the recent evacuation of citizens of several countries through Cyprus as they fled violence in Sudan.

"It was a very important effort and one for which we are very grateful to the leadership of so many in Cyprus who made it possible: from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Defense and the National Guard, but also people who volunteered through the Red Cross and other organizations and they played such an important role and we are very grateful for that," he said.

Finally, she expressed her satisfaction for the meeting with Mrs. Dimitriou, in her capacity as the President of DISY and expressed the hope that this long relationship between DISY and the US Embassy will continue.

"I had the pleasure and the honor today to have the ambassador of the United States of America here at the Democratic Alert. We had an extensive conversation, a discussion about the issues that we are currently called to manage, not only as the Republic of Cyprus but also internationally", said Mrs. Dimitriou in her statements after the conclusion of the meeting.

He noted that, among other things, they discussed the situation in Ukraine and support for principles, while the President of DISY stated that she had the opportunity to inform the Ambassador about the developments in the Cyprus conflict, "unfortunately negative developments with the situation in Famagusta, the matter of properties and so on", as he said.

He thanked the US for its support on the issues of principle and the effort to start the negotiations, which, he said, is the point. "They will be by our side through this strong cooperation, which we have managed to build in the previous years, and of course we need to keep it", he noted, mentioning that the United States of America is an ally of the Republic of Cyprus on all these issues and in particular for the Cyprus issue.

Mrs. Dimitriou also said that they also discussed the issue of sanctions. "We have said that in this matter too the Republic of Cyprus will do what is necessary, and here we await the Government's moves on this issue, to protect its economy, but of course also to protect the name of the Republic of Cyprus of Democracy, so that it is not exploited by anyone", he concluded.

Source: KYPE

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