Round One of Cyprus talks ends
NICOSIA (AP) – The rival leaders of Cyprus ended their first phase of renewed reunification talks yesterday without any sign of a breakthrough. President Glafcos Clerides and Turkish Cypriot leader Rauf Denktash agreed to resume their UN-sponsored talks on March 1. Alvaro de Soto, the special UN envoy, told reporters he hoped that the two leaders would return «with a renewed spirit of understanding and compromise as well as with a sense of urgency.» Clerides spokesman Michalis Papapetrou said a settlement must be based on Security Council resolutions calling for the island’s reunification as a single state with two federal regions; the withdrawal of 35,000 Turkish troops and 100,000 Turkish mainland settlers and the return of 200,000 Greek Cypriot refugees. Denktash and Turkey have rejected the resolutions, demanding recognition of the breakaway Turkish Cypriot state.
