Q: So would you consider extending them this week, after tomorrow, go back to
SG: I think that is the intention, unless there is an unforeseen development.
* * * * *
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PRESS ENCOUNTER WITH THE SECRETARY-GENERAL ON ARRIVAL AT UN HEADQUARTERS
February 9, 2004
Q: Mr. Secretary-General, on the subject of your talks
tomorrow on Cyprus
, just a couple of little things. One, sir can you give us a statement on what you hope to
accomplish, what the best case scenario would be, whether these talks might continue in Cyprus in the region with Mr.
[Alvaro] de Soto. And specifically, I'm reading from a report here, Turkish Cypriot leader Rauf Denktash wants the UN to drop its insistence of
holding a referendum on the peace plan irrespective of the final agreement. He also wants a guarantee that the UN won't dictate how many troops
to compromise on that or address those big issues?
SG: For reasons you can understand, I'm not going
to go into all those questions in detail. These are issues we are going to be discussing at the
table and let me say that I hope when the leaders come tomorrow, at least we can agree on the ground rules of how to proceed and agree on a work
programme that will enable us to conclude our work on the 1st of May. I have made proposals to them for us to discuss when they come here, because,
quite frankly, as I have said, we don't have much time if we are going to meet the deadline of 1 May. It means we will have to finish the
negotiations by [the] end of March to be able to have the referendum in April. So we will discuss
all this to see if the parties are prepared to engage and to sustain the effort for us to ensure that a united * * * * *
Q: So would you consider extending them this week, after
tomorrow, go back to
SG: I think that is the intention, unless there is an unforeseen development.
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