Turkish, Greek Cypriot leaders put off discussions on property issues

Turkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat and his Greek Cypriot counterpart Demetris Christofias will now turn to European Union matters in their next meeting on March 11, United Nations envoy Taye-Brook Zerihoun said.

Thursday's meeting, which lasted around 2-1/2 hours and took place in the buffer zone in Nicosia, was the leaders' twenty-first meeting as part of peace negotiations aimed at finding a comprehensive settlement in the island.

Property problems would be revisited at a later stage because there was a "significant difference in views," AP quoted Christofias as saying.

Thousands of people were forced to abandon their property when the island was split in 1964 after Turkish Cypriots were forced to withdraw into enclaves.

Talat and Christofias last September began slow-paced reunification talks, which have so far showed few signs of tangible progress, after a four-year hiatus.

Neither side sees permanent partition as an option, but they have been unable to agree on how the island will be reunited. On paper, they agree to a bizonal federation, though issues like power-sharing, territorial swaps and a raft of complex property disputes make a deal difficult.