Turkish Cypriots slam Greek Cypriot-British agreement

Hasan Ercakica, spokesman for Turkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat, said the June 5 memorandum of understanding implied Greek Cypriot control over the Turkish Cypriot community, and thus "went beyond the limit".

"Unless the consequences of this development are amended, we will be faced with them as important problems in the settlement of the Cyprus problem," Ercakica said in a written statement.

Greek Cypriot leader Dimitris Christofias and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown signed the agreement in London to strengthen often strained relations between the Mediterranean island and its former colonial ruler.

Christofias has been highly critical of Britain's policy on Cyprus because of a perceived pro-Turkish bias. As Parliament speaker in 2005, Christofias accused London of being Greek Cypriots' "bad demon".

But Christofias hailed this month's agreement as a new era and a turning point in Greek Cypriots' relationship with Britain.

The agreement commits Greek Cypriots and Britain to work together on reunification.

Efforts to reunify Cyprus had remained stalled since 2004 when Greek Cypriots rejected a U.N.-backed plan in a referendum. Turkish Cypriots endorsed it. Christofias and Talat agreed in March to start full-fledged negotiations after a three-month preparation period.

Photo: AFP