NEW YORK – United Nations Secretary-General, who failed to broker a reunification agreement for Cyprus when 2018 negotiations fell apart, said there’s so much mistrust between the sides and time passing that a solution seems unlikely.

In a closed session of the UN Security Council, he reportedly said that despite the dwindling hopes that the Cypriots and Turkish-Cypriots should keep talking, said Turkey’s pro-government newspaper The Daily Sabah.

That approached hasn’t worked for decades and there haven’t been serious attempts at rebooting discussions since the last round of talks collapsed at the Swiss resort of Crans-Montana after Turkey and the Turkish-Cypriot side said a 35,000 strong army on the occupied northern side would never leave.

Turkish-Cypriot hardline leader Ersin Tatar said he won’t  talk about reunification, demanding the UN and world recognize the occupied side that is accepted only by Turkey, which invaded the island in 1974.

Guterres said that internal political developments on both sides are driving the sides further apart, the paper said, although it wasn’t said if he offered any more ideas other than continuing to keep talking.