“We are fully prepared. I go with the sole aim of achieving positive results towards resuming talks from where they were interrupted at Crans-Montana,” President Nikos Christodoulides said on Thursday as he travelled to meet the new Turkish Cypriot leader, Tufan Erhurman, for their first official encounter.

The meeting is taking place at 9.30am at the residence of the United Nations secretary-general’s special representative, Khassim Diagne, near Nicosia airport.

Christodoulides said that he is bringing with him several proposals and approaches aimed at creating developments that could lead to restarting negotiations, as he said while leaving the presidential palace to travel to the old Nicosia airport for the meeting.

“I have with me several proposals and approaches on how these positive developments can be created, and I sincerely hope there will be the same approach, a response, and that after the meeting there will be good news to announce” he said.

In statements on Tuesday, President Christodoulides said he hoped the talks would produce concrete results that could lead to the resumption of negotiations on the Cyprus issue. He specifically referred to continuing discussions from where they were left at Crans-Montana.

“I hope, and with this expectation I go to the meeting, that there will be concrete positive outcomes towards resuming talks from where they were interrupted at Crans-Montana. This is the sole objective, and I go there hoping there will be a response so we can immediately start this major effort,” he said.

“We are fully prepared and, I repeat, I hope there will be a response from the other side so that negotiations can begin as soon as possible.”

The meeting marks the first engagement between the new Turkish Cypriot leadership and the Cypriot president.