Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot parties agreed on joint action on the environment

On Wednesday, 3 December 2025, Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot parties met at the Ledra Palace Hotel in Nicosia under the auspices of the Embassy of Slovakia to discuss common environmental and climate challenges facing the island.

Participants highlighted the need to strengthen cooperation on climate change, forest fires, water scarcity, waste management, pollution and biodiversity loss. During the meeting, the Volt party initiated the inclusion of environmental issues on the agenda.

In a joint statement, the parties pointed to the growing cost of limited interaction for society, the economy and ecosystems, and identified priority areas for practical bilateral work. The sides agreed on the need to strengthen mechanisms for communication, coordination, preparedness and response to forest fires, floods and other natural disasters through the modernisation of the Crisis Management Committee.

On waste and recycling, participants supported the development of bilateral waste-processing facilities, joint awareness campaigns, exchange of expertise and the launch of pilot projects. Joint mechanisms involving state authorities and civil-society organisations were also agreed for collecting and sharing data on air, water and soil quality, as well as measures for rational water use, improving agricultural efficiency, drought preparedness, soil-erosion prevention and climate-adaptation planning.

Coordinated protection of ecosystems and Natura 2000 zones, protection of forests, wetlands, bird-migration routes and marine areas was discussed separately, as well as the development of shared renewable-energy infrastructure with a focus on waste-to-energy solutions and solar installations in new projects.

Representatives called on the leaders of both communities to support the promotion of the outlined priorities and to enable bilateral technical mechanisms to begin concrete cooperation without delay. The next meeting is scheduled for 28 January 2026 and will be held under the patronage of the Embassy of Slovakia, with a guest speaker — the UN Secretary-General’s Special Representative in Cyprus and head of UNFICYP, Hasim Diaan.