The roadmap put forward for the next steps on the Cyprus problem by United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres during his visit to the island last week aims to bring about a “serious preparatory process” with the goal of a “productive” enlarged meeting later in the year, Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhurman’s undersecretary Mehmet Dana said on Thursday.

“The aim of this roadmap is for the two leaders on the island to undergo a serious preparatory process and complete certain homework assignments so as to facilitate a new, but this time productive, five-plus-one meeting,” he told the north’s public broadcaster BRT.

As such, he said, “if this serious preparation is completed and the homework is done, then a new, but this time productive, five-plus-one meeting will be possible”, with “five-plus-one” another term used to describe an enlarged meeting involving the island’s two sides, its three guarantor powers, Greece, Turkey, and the United Kingdom, and the UN.

He said that the meeting of Erhurman and President Nikos Christodoulides which is due to take place on August 26 will be “the first step in this preparatory process”.

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“In this meeting, within the framework outlined by the secretary-general, a process of exchanging views will being, primarily on confidence-building measures, then on methodology, and finally on some substantive issues,” he said.

He added that after the August 26 meeting, “meetings will then continue at a frequency agreed upon by the leaders”, with Erhurman having called for weekly meetings with Christodoulides.

“We, the Turkish Cypriot side, want and support that these meetings be held as frequently as possible so that meaningful preparation can emerge for a new five-plus-one process. Our efforts will be in this direction. The aim is to complete the homework given to us by the secretary-general in a correct and satisfactory manner,” he said.

He went on to stress that the Turkish Cypriot side’s position on the next steps remains unchanged, saying that “our approach, both in the context of negotiations and in the context of the five-plus-one framework, is not to negotiate for the sake of negotiations, nor to have a five-plus-one for the sake of a five-plus-one”.

“Our goal is to achieve a results-oriented process. The framework set out by the secretary-general is also in line with this approach. Therefore, we are determined to move forward in this direction in a resolute and constructive manner,” he said.

As such, he added, “we will continue to participate in this preparatory process, as we have done until now, to ensure that a productive five-plus-one meeting can take place within the framework outlined by the UN secretary-general”.

“We will continue our work to ensure that the issues raised during the secretary-general’s visit are resolved positively, that the necessary atmosphere of trust is established, that progress is made on methodology, and that subsequently, substantive issues are addressed,” he said.

Should these steps be followed, he said, “the meaningful progress the secretary-general expects from us will be achieved, and a new, but productive, five-plus-one meeting will be possible”.

Guterres had said after last week’s tripartite meeting that a new enlarged meeting on the Cyprus problem will be convened “after adequate progress” is achieved on confidence-building measures, the meeting’s methodology, and the substance of the talks. This is the “homework” to which Dana and Erhurman have since referred.

Erhurman had earlier said that “the homework is so clear that it leaves no room for debate”, and that “we are ready within the framework of our people’s will for a solution, and we have clearly stated that we are ready”.

On the Greek Cypriot side, presidential press office director Victor Papadopoulos had said earlier this week that Christodoulides “informed the [National Council] that the entire month of August, he will be at the disposal of the United Nations”, and that “we have been working since the day after meeting [Guterres] … in this direction”.

Later asked whether the “preparatory stage” ahead of the planned enlarged meeting will be more focused on confidence-building measures or on recording convergences, he said that the enlarged meeting’s aim must be “a specific result, which is none other than the resumption of talks”.

“Therefore, [Guterres’] effort is to reach a point where by going into the enlarged meeting … when we go to the talks, we will have a result, and the result, which he has set as a goal, is the resumption of talks,” he said.

He added that “confidence-building measures naturally help create a climate”, but stressed that they are “not a prerequisite” for an enlarged meeting to be convened.