Greek Cypriot, Turkish Cypriot leaders meet in presence of UN envoy

The Greek Cypriot leader, Glafcos Clerides, and the Turkish Cypriot leader, Rauf Denktash, met today in Cyprus in the presence of United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan's Special Adviser, Alvaro de Soto, a UN spokesman said in New York.

"The leaders reiterated their commitment to negotiate on the basis of the Secretary-General's revised proposal of 10 December 2002, with a view to completing an agreement by the end of February so that informed decisions can be taken by the Greek Cypriots and the Turkish Cypriots in separate referenda on 30 March 2003," spokesman Fred Eckhard said.

The leaders have agreed to meet again, together with their advisers, on Friday, according to Mr. Eckhard. A programme for intensive negotiations in the coming weeks would be agreed at that time.

The work of the so-called technical committees will continue in parallel, he added.