Cyprus' Greek Cypriot president said Tuesday there is “no alternative” to full-fledged negotiations to reunify the ethnically divided island. Dimitris Christofias said he has no Plan B other than starting face-to-face reunification talks with Turkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat. Cyprus has been split into a breakaway Turkish Cypriot north and an internationally recognized Greek Cypriot south since 1974, when Turkey invaded after an abortive coup that aimed to unite the island with Greece. “The goal is that negotiations finally take place,” Christofias told a news conference. “There is no alternative proposal from us at least, and I want to believe, as Mr. Talat has assured me, there is no alternative proposal on his part.” Reunification talks had been deadlocked since 2004, when Greek Cypriots rejected and Turkish Cypriots approved a UN reunification blueprint. But Christofias said he would not accept deadlines to be imposed on the negotiations. Any attempt to restrict the talks to a timeframe would be “a tragic mistake,” he said. “There is no deadline for us,” Christofias said. “I've made it clear to Mr. Talat ... that we cannot accept tight timetables for the start or the end of negotiations to solve the Cyprus problem.” Christofias and Talat will meet July 25 to assess progress in preparatory negotiations and decide when to restart direct peace talks. The two broke a four-year stalemate in March when they agreed to launch a renewed peace process. Since then, working groups of experts from the two sides have met regularly in an attempt to bridge the divide on day-to-day as well as more substantial issues, ahead of direct top-level negotiations. Christofias and Talat were to launch these talks by early July. But lack of progress by the working groups on certain key subjects, including property and security issues, has delayed the starting date by at least a month.
