Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hua Chunying held a press conference on 12 February 2014 and made a comment that China welcomes the meeting and the ensuing joint statement between the two leaders.

Q: Cypriot President and Greek Cypriot leader Nicos Anastasiades and his Turkish Cypriot counterpart Dervis Eroglu met on February 11. A joint statement was released after the meeting, representing an official resumption of political negotiation between the South and the North on the Cypriot issue. How does China view this important progress?

A: We have noted the relaunch of negotiation on the Cypriot issue, which is a positive development. We welcome the meeting and the ensuing joint statement between the two leaders. China appreciates the efforts made by the UN and the international community to push for the settlement of the Cypriot issue and supports an equitable and reasonable solution based on relevant UN resolutions. We stand for all the peaceful efforts conducive to the settlement of the Cypriot issue and believe that the solution should be in the interests of both the Greek and Turkish communities in Cyprus. We hope that the two sides could seize the opportunity, narrow down differences through negotiation and work on a mutually acceptable solution. As a permanent member of the UN Security Council, China will continue to play a positive role to that end.