UN envoy meets with Greek foreign minister on Cyprus problem

United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan's Special Adviser on Cyprus, Alvaro de Soto, met in Athens today with Greece's foreign minister and other senior officials.

According to a UN spokesman, during his meeting with Mr. de Soto, Foreign Minister George Papandreou confirmed Greece's support for achieving a comprehensive settlement of the Cyprus problem by 28 February using the Secretary-General's revised proposal of 10 December 2002 as a basis for negotiations.

Mr. de Soto was also scheduled to meet on Thursday with Javier Solana, the European Union's High Representative for Common Foreign and Security Policy.

Mr. de Soto will return tomorrow to Cyprus, where he will attend a meeting in the UN protected area in Nicosia between Glafcos Clerides, the Greek Cypriot leader, and Rauf Denktash, the Turkish Cypriot leader.