President Juncker will lead the EU delegation at Geneva UN talks on Cyprus

Pafos / Πάφος / Bafo (Cyprus) - European Capital of Culture 2017

The Commission has confirmed that President Juncker will travel to Geneva to lead the EU delegation at the new round of talks about the Cyprus reunification. He will attend the UN hosted conference according to the latest European Council's mandate and the fact that Cyprus is an EU Member State. The Commission will provide further details about the composition of the EU delegation next week.

After being asked at the European Parliament about financial aspects relating to the settlement of the Cyprus controversy, President Juncker said: " The negotiations aimed at a fair, comprehensive and viable settlement of the Cyprus problem within the UN framework are Cyprus-owned and Cyprus-led. The European Commission strongly supports politically and technically the negotiations between the leaders of the two communities and stands ready to provide whatever practical assistance both parties and the UN would find most useful."

In the meantime, Pafos (Πάφος / Bafo,) a coastal city in the southwest of Cyprus near the mythical birthplace of Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of love and beauty, has been selected as a European Capital of Culture for 2017. In Greco-Roman times, Pafos was the island's capital and its town is included in the official UNESCO list of cultural and natural treasures of the world's heritage.

Read more: the Cyprus settlement