Denktash says Greek Cypriots reject his requests

Turkish Cypriot leader Rauf Denktash said yesterday Greek Cypriots had rejected all his requests for changes to a UN peace plan, underlining the slow pace of progress in more than two weeks of make-or-break talks.

Cyprus's two communities are under international pressure to reach a deal based on the UN blueprint before May 1, when the internationally recognised Greek Cypriot side will join the European Union with or without a settlement.

Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan said he would visit Athens to seek the co-operation of Greece's newly elected conservative government in efforts to reunite the Mediterranean island after 30 years of ethnic division.

"The Greek Cypriots have rejected in full whatever we requested to bring the Annan Plan to an acceptable shape," Mr Denktash told reporters after yesterday's talks. "They themselves have left practically nothing in the plan unchanged."

The 80-year-old leader, blamed by many for the collapse of negotiations a year ago, has repeatedly criticised the blueprint drawn up by UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan.

He said last week he might quit as negotiator and campaign for a "No" vote against any eventual deal when it is put to referendums in the north and south of the island on April 21.

But the Greek Cypriots are also unhappy with many aspects of the plan. Opinion polls in three Greek Cypriot newspapers on Sunday showed overwhelming opposition, with the projected "No" vote ranging from 54 to 62 per cent.

Greek Cypriot President Tassos Papadopoulos said yesterday's talks tackled security, one of the thornier issues.

The island has been split since 1974, when Turkey invaded after a Greek Cypriot coup backed by the military junta then running Greece. Turkey still keeps more than 30,000 troops in the north, while Greece has a smaller number in the south.

"The Cypriot citizen must feel that the solution to be reached will provide him with security on a permanent basis," Mr Papadopoulos told reporters.

Under a tight, UN-imposed timetable the two Cypriot sides are due to negotiate until March 22. If - as looks virtually certain - they have reached no deal by then, Greece and Turkey will join in for a further week.

Mr Annan then has a mandate to fill in any remaining gaps. With scant sign of movement so far, analysts expect Athens and Ankara to try to inject fresh urgency. Turkey has been especially keen to push for a solution, fearing failure could damage its own hopes of starting EU accession talks.

Mr Erdogan said he hoped the new Greek government of Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis would help keep up the pressure.

"We hope this new government will work with us to contribute positively to these negotiations," Mr Erdogan told reporters. "We want to finish this without leaving any blanks."