Turk PM pledges active diplomacy over Cyprus

Turkey plans to take "courageous" steps to achieve peace in Cyprus, Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan said, but rejected opposition claims that he planned to "sell out" the Turkish Cypriots for EU membership.

The European Union took a historic decision earlier this month to open entry talks with Muslim Turkey next October, but EU member Cyprus, represented by its internationally accepted Greek Cypriot government, could still veto those negotiations.

"We cannot protect Turkish interests on Cyprus... by staying passive... Turkey must always be one step ahead and take the initiative with courageous steps," Mr Erdogan told parliament.

Mr Erdogan did not spell out what measures Turkey planned to take to break a deadlock in efforts to reunite the island that has been divided on ethnic lines since 1974.

But he said the United Nations should revive stalled peace talks between the majority Greek Cypriots and minority Turkish Cypriots, adding that the EU also had a role to play in bringing the two sides closer.

It was Mr Erdogan's second public pledge in just a week to work hard towards a Cyprus settlement, highlighting his concern that the issue could derail Turkey's long-awaited EU entry talks.

At the EU summit on December 17, Turkey agreed to move towards extending an existing protocol it has with the bloc to cover 10 new members which joined last May, including Cyprus.

Ankara insists this will not amount to diplomatic recognition of the Greek Cypriot government, saying this can only come as part of a comprehensive peace settlement.

Turkey recognises only the breakaway Turkish Cypriot statelet in northern Cyprus, while the rest of the world, including the EU, views the Greek Cypriot government as the sole legitimate authority on the island.

Mr Erdogan made clear Turkey was ready to resume the proactive, pragmatic diplomacy which earned it much praise in the last UN-brokered peace talks aimed at reuniting Cyprus.

Those talks culminated in the Turkish Cypriots voting in favour of a UN peace plan in an April referendum while Greek Cypriots, their place in the EU already assured, rejected it.

Deniz Baykal, leader of the nationalist-minded People's Republican Party (CHP), accused Mr Erdogan of preparing to betray the Turkish Cypriots in order to keep Turkey's EU bid on track.

"Nobody has the right to sacrifice Cyprus. The nation will sacrifice you (the government), it will not sacrifice Cyprus," Mr Baykal told parliament.

Cyprus was divided in 1974 when Turkish troops invaded the north after a brief Greek Cypriot coup engineered by the military junta then ruling Greece.