BBC News

flightholiday


Joined: 19/07/2007
Posts: 107


Message Posted:
21/03/2008 13:40

All old hat and those who have experience have "heard it before" but we can always hope for good news actualy coming good.



Just seen on the BBC today:



2 Articles



1]

Cyprus leaders begin peace talks



The two leaders shook hands before starting the talks

The new president of Cyprus, Demetris Christofias, is holding talks with Turkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat aimed at reunifying the divided island.

It is the first time the two men are meeting since Mr Christofias was elected president last month.



Both leaders are from the political left and have been optimistic about the chance to work towards a settlement.



Talks have been stalled since 2004 when Greek Cypriots rejected a UN peace plan that was backed by Turkish Cypriots.



We have a vision that the Turkish Cypriots and the Greek Cypriots are children of the same island



Demetris Christofias

Cypriot President





Christofias: Man in a hurry



Mr Christofias and Mr Talat shook hands at the start of their meeting in a UN buffer zone near the abandoned Nicosia airport.



"We will have Cypriot coffee together," Mr Christofias said, AFP news agency reports.



Differences



The question now is whether that goodwill can be translated into the elements of a solution, the BBC's Tabitha Morgan reports from Cyprus.



Both leaders have promoted contact between the Greek and Turkish Cypriot communities, but it is not clear how negotiations will proceed.





Mr Talat favours returning to the 2004 UN-backed plan. But because the plan was rejected by 75% of Greek Cypriot voters, Mr Christofias prefers discussions to build on an agreement reached in July 2006.



This focused on individual confidence-building measures and practical areas where progress could be made.



Before the talks, Mr Christofis said he hoped for a deal to open a crossing point at Ledra street, a pedestrian thoroughfare in Nicosia that runs along the city's dividing line.



The street has come to symbolise the partition of the island.



Our correspondent says that whatever route is decided, negotiations are likely to be long and complex, for - as Mr Christofias himself has said - this diplomatic initiative cannot afford to fail.



The talks are being moderated by the UN's special representative to Cyprus, Michael Moller.



The Greek and Turkish Cypriots have been divided since 1974, when Turkey sent troops into the north, after a coup by Greek Cypriots who wanted union with Greece.



The island's partition has long stood as an obstacle to Turkey's bid to join the EU. The Greek Cypriot south, which joined the EU in 2004, hold veto rights over Turkey's accession.



**************

2]

Greek Cypriots dismantle barrier



It will be some time before Ledra Street reopens fully





Barrier demolished

Greek Cypriots have demolished a key section of the barrier dividing the island's capital city, Nicosia.

The Green Line has separated Cyprus's Greeks from the Turkish population since 1974, when Turkish troops occupied the north.



The work in Ledra Street began under cover of darkness and had not been publicised in advance.



But the Greek Cypriot authorities say Turkish troops must pull back before people can cross in either direction.



Ledra Street - a pedestrianised shopping area - would be the sixth crossing point on the divided island.



Barbed wire



The move was welcomed by the Turkish Cypriot Prime Minister, Ferdi Sabit Soyer, as "a positive development".





Click here for Nicosia map

The UN chief of mission, Michael Moller, also hailed it as "a positive contribution of great significance", the AFP news agency reported.



It's a good move, but one that needs to be part of a much wider process



Peter Millett

British High Commissioner





Symbolic breach in Nicosia



The street was cordoned off to allow heavy equipment and demolition crews to move into position.



A small crowd watched the action, applauding when work on tearing down the barrier began.



"This is a show of goodwill on our side to contribute positively to opening Ledra Street," government spokesman Christodoulos Pashardes told state television.





It used to be a bustling road in the heart of Nicosia's commercial district but for more than 40 years it has been blocked by a large wall and a viewing platform overlooking the demilitarised strip separating north from south.





In December a controversial bridge over the wall was removed



The structures have been replaced by plastic barricades.



The Turkish Cypriot breakaway state in the north is recognised only by Turkey.



In December the Turkish Cypriot authorities dismantled a controversial footbridge on Ledra Street, which was built in 2005. It had angered Greek Cypriots, who said it encroached into the UN buffer zone separating the two sides.



The Green Zone is policed by United Nations troops, amid barbed wire and dilapidated buildings with sand bags still sitting in the windows.



Cyprus was partitioned after a Turkish invasion in 1974, which came shortly after a Greek Cypriot coup backed by the military junta ruling Greece at the time.



Shortly before joining the European Union in 2004 the Greek Cypriots rejected a United Nations plan to reunify the island.



The BBC's Chloe Hadjimatheou says it will be a while before Ledra Street opens fully.



First the disused ordnance and derelict buildings will have to be made safe and then UN forces will have to establish a checkpoint to police the crossing.



- Many thanks to the BBC and their ticker which helps us see this information



Tom

IAH Ltd

www.flightholiday.co.uk

08718552925

TimothyCadman


Joined: 13/12/2007
Posts: 349


Message Posted:
21/03/2008 13:43

Starbucks and Next here I come! You'll be so much more conveniant!

joandjelly



Joined: 24/02/2008
Posts: 315


Message Posted:
21/03/2008 15:26

Starbucks and Mcdonalds yuck yuck yuck - I can't think of anything worse!

livethedream


Joined: 12/04/2007
Posts: 315


Message Posted:
21/03/2008 15:39

Me either joandjelly!

simbas



Joined: 16/07/2007
Posts: 1569


Message Posted:
21/03/2008 15:43

god, it sounds horrendous ,

Boredhousewife



Joined: 15/03/2007
Posts: 883


Message Posted:
21/03/2008 16:05

Stay in England I say if you want that stuff! Hate it all - anything commercialised - karoake, del-boy and rodney bars, English themed bars, mcdonalds, large football screens (sorry any football fans), yuk, yuk, yuk!!! That's why we chose TRNC for its beauty!

TimothyCadman


Joined: 13/12/2007
Posts: 349


Message Posted:
21/03/2008 17:15

Boredhousewife,



"karoake, del-boy and rodney bars, English themed bars, large football screens (sorry any football fans), yuk, yuk, yuk!!!"



So why are you here in the TRNC? All the above exist here. Although we have no McDonalds we do have Burger King; it's called Burger City. Don't believe me? Then be there around 9am when the delivery comes, or check out their bins. All boxes and containers are labeled Burger King and the operating company, TAB Gida, is the main franchisee in Turkey for Burger King.

Boredhousewife



Joined: 15/03/2007
Posts: 883


Message Posted:
21/03/2008 18:19

They arent in your face as much as other places and yes have seen Burger City.