Turkish Cypriot leader seeks EU presidency as unified Cyprus by 2012

PanARMENIAN.Net - Turkish Cypriot leader Derviş Eroğlu seeks to hold the EU presidency as a unified Cyprus by 2012.

He is set to hold trilateral talks in Geneva on Thursday, July 7, to set a definite agenda. Eroğlu recently called for talks to be concluded within the next three to five months to reach an agreement.

The Turkish Cypriot leader is attending a tripartite meeting with the Greek Cypriot leader and UN chief in Geneva to conclude negotiations at the latest in 2012 and take the European Union Presidency at that time as a “Unified Cyprus” with Greek Cypriots.

“We expect the UN chief to propose an action plan for more a comprehensive and intensified schedule of talks that will lead to an agreement and referendum on both sides in 2012, so that we can then take the EU term presidency as a unified Cyprus,” Hurriyet Daily News quoted a Turkish Cypriot official as saying.

Eroğlu said late last month that if an agreement to reunite Cyprus is ever going to be reached, it will happen within the next three to five months.