By David Brunnstrom
Turkish Cypriot Leader Mehmet Ali Talat responded coolly yesterday to Finnish proposals to avert a crisis over Turkey's EU membership ambitions, saying it was dangerous to take a piecemeal approach to the Cyprus issue.
Talat speaking at a Brussels news briefing after talks with senior EU officials said the Cyprus issue could be settled only through a comprehensive solution proposed by the United Nations and part of this could not simply be put to another plan.
He said the Turkish Cypriots side was taking a "constructive" approach to the Finnish proposals, noting they were neither written no finalised, but what was needed was an unconditional lifting of the isolation of northern Cyprus.
"There are dangerous elements to it" he said. "Lifting of the isolation is not something conditional... if we go to find a solution by a piecemeal approach, we will lose ourselves in that jungle."
The European Commission has warned of a "train crash" in Turkey's membership talks unless Ankara speeds reforms and opens its ports to shipping from Cyprus.
A plan floated by the Finnish EU presidency envisages Turkey opening some ports and Turkish Cypriots being allowed to trade directly with the outside world through a port that would be jointly run by both communities under EU supervision.
This would be twinned with a move to put the ghost town of Varosha under international supervision so Greek Cypriot owners oversee property repairs.
