Nicosia yesterday reacted positively to a joint proposal by France and Germany to review Turkey's EU progress by 2009, noting that the move could pressure Ankara into opening trade with Cyprus.

«It is very significant that Germany and France have decided on a common position in setting a new rendezvous for a new assessment of Turkey meeting its EU obligations,» Cypriot Foreign Minister Giorgos Lillikas said before flying to Paris to be briefed on the proposal.

Germany and France yesterday called for an EU progress report on Turkey's membership bid by spring 2009, backtracking on their earlier suggestion that an 18-month deadline be imposed on Ankara to lift an embargo on Cypriot air and sea traffic.

«Whether the time frame is 18 months or two years is not of great importance. The significance is in the fact that Turkey will undergo a new assessment,» Lillikas said. «Without setting a new assessment time frame, Turkey has no incentive to implement its obligations.»