Cypriot leaders to hold first meeting since elections

May 25, 2010, 16:06 GMT

Athens/Nicosia - Greek Cypriot leader Dimitris Christofias will hold his first meeting with his Turkish Cypriot counterpart Dervis Eroglu on Tuesday after a two-month break for elections which saw Eroglu replace moderate leader Mehmet Ali Talat.

Christofias is due to meet with Eroglu for dinner late Tuesday at a restaurant located in the UN-controlled buffer zone separating the eastern Mediterranean island. Both men will be accompanied by their wives.

The dinner meeting will take place on the eve of peace talks interrupted for the Turkish Cypriot elections.

Alexander Downer, the UN envoy for Cyprus said the meeting was seen as a good opportunity for both leaders to get to know each other before the start of official talks Wednesday.

Cyprus has been been divided since 1974, when Turkey invaded the northern third of the island in response to a Greek-inspired coup.

Turkey still maintains approximately 45,000 troops on the island, and a UN force of 850 troops patrols the Green Line, or buffer zone, which divides the internationally recognized Greek Cypriot south and Turkish Cypriot north, which is recognized only by Turkey.

Despite progress on governance and power sharing, months of negotiations between Christofias and Talat had failed to bridge the gap of more difficult issues, including property, security and territorial adjustments.

Any agreement between the two leaders will have to pass a referendum on both sides of the island.

Eroglu, who has repeatedly expressed his desire for Turkish Cypriot independence, defeated incumbent Mehemt Ali Talat in presidential elections last month in the breakaway northern third of the island.

Greek Cypriots, meanwhile, want one state with two self- administrating areas.

Greek Cypriot voters overwhelmingly rejected a 2004 UN reunification blueprint in a referendum, despite a Turkish referendum approving the plan.

European Union officials have said that progress at the Cyprus reunification talks are essential to helping Turkey's slow-moving EU accession process move forward.

Although the peace talks and Turkey's EU membership negotiations are separate processes, a breakthrough on one is likely to have a positive impact on the other.