Gul Hopes Cyprus Issue Will Be Solved By Mutual Compromise Before May 1

ANKARA - Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah Gul said on Friday that he hoped Cyprus issue would be solved by mutual compromise before May 1.
Gul told reporters that meetings and consultations on Cyprus which had continued in New York for three days ended earlier in the day and parties agreed to resume talks.
Talks would resume in Cyprus on February 19, Gul stated and wished that the process would be beneficial.
Gul pointed out that Turkish side had good will from the outset and that the process continued by patience and political will.
Noting that all the concerned parties had done their best and made every kind of contribution to resumption of talks, Gul thanked to the concerned parties.
Recalling that all those efforts had been launched with Turkey's initiative, Gul said, ''we hope everything will be settled by a mutual compromise before May 1 and then, Cyprus will join European Union (EU) as new partnership.''
Gul added that Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) President Rauf Denktas had made the most significant contribution to the current stage reached on the issue.
(BRC-AÖ) 13.02.2004