Turkey says pace of Cyprus peace talks needs to speed up

"We believe that the negotiations continue on a good ground but that the process is advancing extremely slowly," foreign ministry spokesman Burak Ozugergin was quoted by AFP as telling a news conference.Â

Turkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat has also raised the issue, adding that "the frequency of the meetings could be increased or the modalities changed".

"The Cyprus issue must be given a timeframe. It cannot remain open-ended," he added.

Cyprus has been divided since 1964 when Turkish Cypriots were forced to withdraw into enclaves.

Talat and his Greek Cypriot counterpart Demetris Christofias began talks in September after a four-year hiatus.Â

 

The launch of negotiations marked the first major push for peace since the failure of a U.N. reunification plan in 2004, which was approved by Turkish Cypriots but overwhelmingly rejected by the Greek Cypriots.

 

Despite ten face-to-face meetings, the two sides have made little tangible progress.

 

Power sharing disputes remain at the heart of the Cyprus problem. The Greek Cypriots are seeking a reunification under a strong federal government but the Turkish Cypriots prefer a more devolved union.

 

ONGOING DISPUTES

In 2006, the EU froze accession talks with Turkey in eight of the 35 policy chapters that candidates must complete in response to Ankara's refusal to open its ports and airports to Greek Cypriot ships and planes under a customs union accord.

Last week, the EU called on Turkey to normalize ties with Greek Cypriots as "as a matter of urgency" and chided the country for failing to fulfill its obligations under the accord.

Ozugergin said Wednesday that "disagreement with the EU on the legal interpretation" of the accord was persisting; adding that EU pressure on the issue could have a negative impact on the peace talks in Cyprus.

"It is meaningless to further muddy the waters at a time when negotiations are under way in Cyprus," he said.

Turkey refuses to open its ports and airports to Greek Cypriots until the EU fulfills its pledge to ease the isolation of the Turkish Cypriots.

Greek Cypriots have also accused Turkey of harassing research vessels on four occasions since Nov. 13 in areas it has earmarked for future oil and gas exploration. Turkey has said the ships were on its continental shelf.

Ozugergin said plans by Greek Cypriots to press ahead with oil exploration while reunification talks were under way were part of the Greek Cypriots' "adventurist psychology".

"We don't see how Greek Cypriot (oil) explorations would conform to the interests of the EU. We repeat at every opportunity that there is no place for opportunism in Turkish-EU relations," Reuters quoted him as saying.