Armenian, Assyrian and Hellenic Genocide News

Turkish Cypriot leader may quit UN talks
by FT.com - 28/11/2000
Posted: Wednesday, November 29, 2000 07:21 pm CST

Rauf Denktash, the Turkish Cypriot leader, will pull out of United Nations talks aimed at reuniting the divided island of Cyprus unless the UN revises its proposals for a settlement, Turkish officials said on Monday.

Mr Denktash, whose breakaway Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus is recognised only by Ankara, earlier appeared to receive the support of Bulent Ecevit, Turkey''s prime minister, for saying he would not return to a sixth round of UN- sponsored negotiations in January.

Turkey has every interest in keeping the Turkish Cypriots at the negotiating table, not least to prevent the European Union from admitting only the Greek Cypriot south, which the EU has said it might do if a settlement fails to materialise.

Kofi Annan, UN secretary-general, drew the outline of a possible deal and invited Greek and Turkish Cypriots to respond. But his ideas angered Turkish Cypriots by holding out the possibility of Greek Cypriots recovering lost property in the north instead of proposing a "global exchange" of assets sought by the Turkish side.

Without going as far as a confederation of two separate states sought by Mr Denktash, the UN did, however, concede the principle of two "component states", as well as the continued presence of Turkish troops on the island.

Analysts called the timing of the proposals unfortunate. They were announced on the same day that the European Commission published a document in which it agreed, under Greek pressure, to make Turkish support for the UN''s efforts a pre-condition for starting EU membership talks with Turkey.

This gave some the impression that the UN and the EU were joining forces against the Turkish Cypriots and Ankara in favour of the Greek Cypriots supported by Athens.

Mr Denktash described the talks as "a waste of time" as long as the UN did not accept the Turkish Cypriots'' desire for a separate state capable of guaranteeing their economic and physical security. Greek Cypriots had begun unpicking power-sharing arrangements three years after the island gained independence from Britain in 1960.

Turkish troops seized control of the north after a 1974 coup backed by Athens sought to merge the island with Greece. The division then became entrenched.

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