UN's Ban hails progress on Cyprus

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said Wednesday that following "clear-the-air" talks in Geneva, progress has been made in Cyprus peace negotiations to reunify the divided Mediterranean island. "There has been progress since we last met in November," Ban told journalists after a four-hour meeting with the Greek and Turkish Cypriot leaders in Geneva. "Based on discussions today it is clear that the two leaders worked to move closer together through a range of bridging proposals, notably in the chapters of the economy, EU matters and governance." He characterized the meeting as "spirited and substantive," which "contributed to clearing the air on several key issues." Both sides are committed to intensifying the negotiations in the coming weeks with additional meetings, he added.