(BRUSSELS) - The European Union welcomed Friday as "an important symbolic step" a decision by rival Cypriot leaders to reopen a street running through the divided capital of Cyprus.

The decision to reopen the Ledra Street crossing was announced after talks between Cyprus President Demetris Christofias and Mehmet Ali Talat, the Turkish Cypriot leader of the northern third of the divided Mediterranean island.

"This meeting has clearly placed action aimed at encouraging trust between the two sides on the island on a more solid foundation," said Slovenian Foreign Minister Dimitrij Rupel, whose country holds the EU's rotating presidency.

"The announced reopening of the Ledra Street crossing in Nicosia has sparked new hope for reunification of an island divided now for decades," he said in a statement.

"It is an important symbolic step of political significance, and Slovenia encourages both sides to continue down the road of dialogue."

Cyprus has been divided along ethnic lines since 1974 when Turkey seized its northern third in response to an Athens-engineered Greek Cypriot coup in Nicosia aimed at uniting the island with Greece.

A UN bid at reunification failed in 2004 when the Greek Cypriots voted against the plan in a referendum, although the Turkish Cypriots -- whose statelet is only recognised by Ankara -- voted overwhelmingly in favour.

Cyprus joined the EU that year and has been at the heart of tensions over Turkey's troubled bid to become a member of the bloc.

EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn commended the decision of the two leaders to "review the work of the working groups and technical committees and, using their results, start full-fledged negotiations" under UN auspices.

"The EU stands ready to support the negotiations and both parties," he said in a separate statement, adding: "I look forward to walking across the Green Line at Ledra Street myself in the near future."

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