Bush Invited Greeks to Negotiation Table

Bush sent a letter to Greek Cypriot Leader Tasos Papadopulos stressing that he wanted the Cyprus issue to be solved before May 1 on the basis of the Annan Plan. In this letter, Bush stated that during his Washington visit Erdogan assured him that Turkey was ready to accept the conditions of Annan to commence talks and that the Greek side should display the same political willingness to solve the issue.

Meanwhile, UN Secretary General Annan reportedly talked with Greek Prime Minister Costas Simitis and Foreign Minister Yorgo Papandreou on the phone and asked from them for assurance to commence the negotiations. Another figure that called on the Greek side to solve the issue was U.S. State Secretary Colin Powell, who stressed in his meeting with Papadopulos that the Greek side should do whatever necessary to solve the issue.

Erdogan: We Are Determined To Take Steps

Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan gave the message that Turkey could take new steps to solve the Cyprus issue. Erdogan said, “Turkey, as a guarantor country, is ready to take necessary steps to solve this issue. We will not talks about this to just propagandize.”