NICOSIA – Turkish-Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci wants Cyprus to dissolve its government in favor of a new two-state federation as part of any unity deal.

That drew an immediate rebuke from Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades just as the two are set to hold three days of talks starting Jan. 9 in Geneva, and be joined three days later by the United Kingdom, Turkey and Greece, guarantors of security on the island divided since an unlawful Turkish invasion in 1974.

Anastasiades’ office said the government would stay in place and not be replaced by a federation with Greek and Turkish states and that it wants the UN Security Council to be part of any deal.

Akinci said a federal Cyprus and not the existing Republic will sign a reunification deal, but Cyprus government spokesman Nikos Christodoulides said there’s no way that would happen.

Christodoulides also dismissed Akinci’s assertion that the presence of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council “is not needed” at the Geneva summit.

“If we want to reach a positive result then we cannot but support the participation of the five permanent members of the Security Council and the European Union,” Christodoulides said, Kathimerini reported.