EU hopes for progress in Turkey-Cyprus ties

The EU cautioned Turkey Wednesday that its refusal to recognize Cyprus may hurt its membership bid and expressed hope that ties between the two would improve before Ankara starts accession talks.

In a reminder to Turkey not to dismiss Cyprus' role in EU decisions, Dutch Foreign Minister Bernard Bot said: "Turkey will be negotiating with 25 member states."

"We hope that the situation will be settled before we open (accession) negotiations," added Bot, whose country holds the rotating EU presidency.

He was speaking after talks here between EU officials and Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul.

Turkey does not acknowledge the internationally-recognized Greek Cypriot government in the south of the divided Mediterranean island, backing instead the self-styled Turkish Cypriot republic in the north, where it keeps some 30,000 troops.

Gul blamed the Greek Cypriots for the impasse, saying they had squandered an opportunity to resolve the conflict in April when they voted down a UN settlement plan to end Cyprus' three-decade division, which the Turkish Cypriots endorsed.

The failure of the referendum ensured that only the Greek Cypriots joined the EU as the internationally-recognized side of the island, leaving the breakaway Turkish Cypriots out in the cold and drawing criticism from Brussels.

The Greek Cypriot leadership has issued veiled threats that it may block Turkey's bid to start accession talks when EU leaders take up the issue on December 17, if Ankara insists on its non-recognition policy.

Cyprus has been divided since 1974 when Turkey seized the north in response to an Athens-engineered military coup in Nicosia aimed at uniting the island with Greece.