Greece says Cyprus fate in Cypriots' hands

Greece said yesterday the fate of Cyprus now rested squarely with the island's two ethnic communities, but suggested it saw little to commend a UN-backed reunification plan they will vote on this month.

Turkish Cypriot prime minister Mehmet Ali Talat said his side saw improvements in the plan and that veteran leader Rauf Denktash, long seen by many Western diplomats as a major obstacle to a settlement, would be persuaded.

Greek Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis said he had tried hard to forge a compromise at talks this week with Turkey and Turkish Cypriots. But the UN blueprint that emerged differed little from drafts already rejected by Greek Cyprus and Athens.

Greece's main objections focus on the plan's provisions for Turkish and Greek troops to remain on the island at least until 2018 and on transitional exemptions from basic EU laws that would limit rights of Greek Cypriots in the Turkish north.

A "yes" vote on both sides in an April 24 referendum would allow Cyprus to enter the EU just a week later under a single flag as a loose association of two largely autonomous zones.

Turkey backs the UN plan but Karamanlis's comments during a briefing in parliament on the negotiations made clear that even if it is approved in the Turkish zone its chances of endorsement by Greek Cypriots appear for now slim.

"We don't want to impose a solution... but the (revised) plan is basically the main plan with only some minor changes," Mr Karamanlis said.

"The final judgement rests with the Cypriot people." Greek Cypriots who oppose the blueprint are planning to hold a demonstration in central Nicosia today.

Mr Talat told the Turkish Cypriot news agency TAK yesterday he believed Denktash would accept the revised plan.

"It's certain there have been improvements in the plan, and I think (Denktash) will accept this. He has been persuaded that the plan is improved. This is clear," Mr Talat said.

The veteran Denktash's endorsement would greatly increase hopes of the plan passing the vote in Turkish Cyprus.

The United States and Europe are pressing hard for acceptance, fearing deep diplomatic complications over the island if the Greek part enters the EU next month, deepening the isolation of the north, which is recognised only by Ankara.

Cyprus has been partitioned since Turkish troops invaded in 1974, seizing the northern third of the island, in response to a coup by Greek Cypriot militants seeking union with Greece. The island was riven by communal bloodshed in the 1960s.

Turkish Cypriot foreign minister Serdar Denktash, Rauf Denktash's son, said that even if the plan was approved by both Greek and Turkish Cypriots, stitching the country back together after 30 years of partition would be a daunting task.