07/08/2009
NICOSIA, Cyprus -- The first stage of talks between President Demetris Christofias and Turkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat on reunifying Cyprus ended Thursday (August 6th). Talat later said that stage two of the talks will begin on September 3rd and that the toughest issue to tackle has been property rights on the divided island. The UN special envoy to Cyprus, Alexander Downer, says the UN sees significant progress in the talks. (Financial Mirror - 07/08/09; Anadolu news agency, ITAR-TASS, Xinhua - 06/08/09)