Turkey stalling on bilateral Cyprus meeting

Hopes for special talks on Cyprus between Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan ahead of a multiparty summit on the issue of the divided Mediterranean island scheduled to take place in Geneva on January 12 are being frustrated by the apparent reluctance of Turkish authorities to have bilateral talks with Greece about Cyprus and some difference of opinion on certain issues between Athens and Nicosia.

Preparatory talks had been slated to get under way between senior officials of the Greek and Turkish foreign ministries to lay the groundwork for a meeting between Tsipras and Erdogan but no contacts have been made at that level, sources indicated.

There are concerns among Greek diplomats that Erdogan wants to avoid talks with Tsipras and is aiming to broach the thorny issues of security and guarantees on Cyprus, as well as matters...