Cyprus ratified its membership of the European Union today in a move that could heal or cement the Mediterranean island's decades-old partition.
Less than a year before the EU admits 10 new member states in its biggest-ever enlargement, Cyprus is running out of time to end an ethnic division.
The accession treaty was ratified unanimously with a show of hands in Cyprus's House of Representatives. But amid jubilance, some struck a sombre note that Turkish Cypriots, who make up 20 per cent of the island's 800,000 population, would be left out.
"Division prevents us from sharing our joy with our Turkish Cypriot compatriots," said Parliament speaker Demetris Christofias. "We should be moving forward as a reunited Cyprus, but there is still enough time for that to happen," he said.
Cyprus, which will become a southernmost outpost of the EU when it joins next May, will have its membership restricted to its southern two-thirds controlled by the internationally recognised Greek Cypriot government.
The northern third of Cyprus is a Turkish-Cypriot breakaway state recognised only by Ankara. It was created from territory seized by Turkish troops in a July 1974 invasion following a brief Greek Cypriot coup.
Almost three decades later, the island is a key factor on whether Turkey - which holds 30,000 troops in northern Cyprus - can ever get its foot in the European door.
Mediators increased the pressure on the two sides last year to accept a complex United Nations reunification blueprint. But that bid failed last March and there is no indication of when talks may resume.