Turkish Cypriot leader says reunification talks will continue
07/02/2010
BRUSSELS, Belgium -- Turkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat vowed on Friday (February 5th) to continue talks with Cypriot President Demetris Christofias on the reunification of the divided island. "Although we [Turkish Cypriots] have elections in April, I'm not going to stop the talks. I have decided to continue until the end, because I don't want to lose any momentum," Talat said at a meeting of the European Policy Centre think-tank in Brussels. He added he has proposed moving the talks to a neutral location to reduce domestic political pressures, but Christofias has refused. Nevertheless, the Cypriot president agreed to intensify the talks, which has resulted in resolving some important issues, Talat said. (Hurriyet - 06/02/10; Financial Times - 05/02/10)