In a move intended to relaunch reunification talks, leaders on both sides of the divided Mediterranean island of Cyprus agreed to meet again in three months and to open up a barricaded street in the heart of the capital Nicosia, according to dpa. Cypriot President Dimitris Christofias and Turkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat made the announcement after emerging from their talks in their first face-to-face meeting inside the UN-controlled buffer zone near the long-abandoned Nicosia airport. UN special representative to Cyprus, Michale Moller, who moderated the talks, said the two leaders would set up working groups and technical committees by next week. "In the full responsibilty for the conduct of future negotiations, the leaders have also agreed to meet three months from now to review the work of the working groups and technical committess, and using their results, to start full-fledged negotations under the auspices of the Secretary-General of the United Nations," Moller told journalists outside his residence located inside the buffer zone. The leaders have also agreed to meet as and when needed prior to the commencement of their formal negotiations. Christofias and Talat said the first step would be to open up Ledras Street as soon as technically possible and for it to function in accordance with the established practices at other crossings. The issue of the openings of the Limnistis crossing and other crossings is also on the agenda for the coming meetings of their advisors. Ledra Street, which has come to symbolize the island's division, is a busy pedestrian thoroughfare marking the dividing line between the ethnic Greek and Turkish parts of the city. The street has been split for decades between the Greek Cypriot south and Turkish Cypriot north and its opening has become almost a litmus test for measures to bring the two communities closer and ease the way to reunification talks. Although the wall was torn down in recent years the street remained blocked due to controversy over military patrols in the area. UN officials said it will take 10-15 days for the UN to finish sweeping the area for mines before it can open the street up, which is filled with decaying buildings, to the public. "This is a new era we are starting for the solution of the Cyprus problem. Our target is to find a comprehensive solution to the Cyprus problem as soon as possible," Talat said. "Our coffee was Cypriot coffee ... Mr Talat and I are friends and we cannot become enemies," Christofias said, adding that "we have been trying for the last 14 years to find a solution and it is in the best interests of both our communities to find a solution as soon as possible." Cyprus has been divided since 1974 when Turkey invaded the northern third of the island in response to a brief Greek-inspired coup. With a new Cypriot president in office, expectations are running high for reunification talks to resume, stalled since a UN-brokered peace plan came to nothing almost four years ago after Greek Cypriots voted no. It is hoped that the long overdue agreement to open Ledra Street will provide the momentum for further confidence building measures. The UN-patrolled buffer zone prevented Cypriots from moving between the two sides until five crossing points opened in 2003. Christofias has said he was ready to discuss a bi-zonal federation on the basis of existing agreements and European Union law. He said he wants talks to focus around a 2006 UN-brokered deal, which called for an incremental approach to peace-building while Talat wants to use the 2004 UN blueprint.
