ZAGREB - Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Monday he believed the European Union would not pay much attention to a "part of Cyprus" threat to hamper Ankara's EU entry talks.
"Certainly, the southern part of Cyprus will use the right of veto to the maximum degree" during the EU accession talks, Erdogan told journalists here after meeting his Croatian counterpart Ivo Sanader.
"Currently I do not believe ... members of the European Union would pay a lot of attention to that veto of a part of Cyprus," he added.
Erdogan, who arrived earlier Monday for a two-day visit to Croatia, spoke as the 25-nation bloc's foreign ministers hammered out a deal to start detailed negotiations with Ankara, overcoming last minute Cypriot objections.
Cyprus had been refusing to agree to the first detailed talks until Turkey recognized the Greek Cypriot government and fully implemented the so-called Ankara protocol.
06/12/2006 15:08 GMT