Cyprus’s leaders made history last month with a good humoured joint TV broadcast giving a holiday message to the people delivered in halting Turkish by Nicos Anastasiades and in Cypriot Greek by Mustafa Akinci.
The Christmas Eve transmission saw Mr Anastasiades wish for “Turkish Cypriots and Greek Cypriots to live once more peacefully in a reunited country” as both men chuckled at his efforts to speak Turkish.
Mr Akinci then spoke in fluent Cypriot Greek to wish “lasting peace, serenity and prosperity for all Cypriots”.
The lighthearted effort by both men bolstered their declarations of hope for a 2016 peace deal and although the broadcast was dismissed by some as “engineered by outside forces”, it was welcomed by many more as positive proof of progress.
The pair met on today and are due to get together again next Thursday before they attend the World Economic CAS Forum from January 20-23 in Davos, Switzerland, and meet up once more this month on Friday, January 29.
See the video below:
[youtube width=”600″ height=”400″]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XvIdREDrCCE[/youtube]
