Colin Powell took action as the “facilitator.” on Cyprus

A U.S. official said; We asked from Gul that the Turkish side should be constructive and productive when the parties come together. Mr. Erdogan had already gave assurance that the Turkish side would always be one step ahead of the Greek side.
Powell said that the Turkish side should act in line with that statement. Powell called Greek Foreign Minister Yorgo Papandreou as well. He asked from Papandreou to press on the Greek Cypriot side for the Cyprus negotiations to last.

Meanwhile, U.S. Cyprus Coordinator Thomas Weston met both Turkish Cypriot President Rauf Denktas and Greek Cypriot Leader Tasos Papadopulos. Following these meetings, Weston said that his meetings were positive.

TRNC Prime Minister Mehmet Ali Talat drew attention to the fact that Greek Cypriots wanted to postpone talks until after May 1. However, according to Talat, solving the Cyprus issue turned out to be a “necessity.”