CYPRUS: NEGOTIATIONS ON reuniting Cyprus begin today in a climate of uncertainty. Cyprus president Dimitris Christofias and Turkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat are due to meet at the buffer zone residence of UN mission chief Taye-Brook Zerihoun.
Alexander Downer, a former Australian foreign minister who is the special representative of the UN secretary-general, will attend.
The purpose of the gathering is to set the agenda for talks to begin on September 11th, with the leaders committed to weekly encounters to assess progress. Preparatory talks, which began last March, have resulted in the opening of the Ledra Street crossing at the heart of partitioned Nicosia and in agreements for co-operation on a number of day-to-day problems.
However, hopes are fading that Mr Christofias, head of the communist Akel party, which was elected on a platform of restarting the reunification effort, will be able to reach a deal with Mr Talat, leader of the left-leaning Republican Turkish Party. The atmosphere soured ahead of today's meeting when the Turkish side refused to permit Greek Cypriots living in the far west of the island to cross a checkpoint into Turkish-controlled territory to participate in a pilgrimage to a church in the Turkish-occupied town of Morphou.
Greek Cypriots had expected this concession because in early August more than 1,000 Turkish Cypriots had crossed through that checkpoint and travelled to a former Turkish Cypriot enclave.
The rejection coincided with a statement by Mr Talat in which he called for a Cyprus settlement based on two founder states and the political equality of the two communities. He said Turkish Cypriots would not yield their demand that Turkey remain a guarantor power and retain the right of intervention. His remarks were echoed by Turkish president Abdullah Gul following discussions with Mr Talat in Ankara last week.
Greek Cypriot negotiator George Iacovou accused Mr Talat of having contradictory positions, taken during four meetings with Mr Christofias. These focused on the creation of a bi-zonal, bicommunal federation with a single international personality, sovereignty and citizenship.
Greek Cypriots expect lengthy negotiations because of wide differences on territory, powers of the central government, land ownership, mainland Turkish settlers and return of Greek Cypriot refugees to homes and villages in the Turkish-held north. Cyprus foreign minister Markos Kyprianou said some issues were "particularly difficult because of the importance given to them by Turkey".
The two sides agree that any reunification plan would be put to separate, simultaneous referendums. There have been no serious negotiations since 2004, when Greek Cypriots, then led by former president Tassos Papadopoulos, rejected a comprehensive UN plan approved by Turkish Cypriots.