Cyprus wants Turkish 'normalisation' move by next March: FM

BRUSSELS, Dec 13 (AFP) - Cyprus wants Turkey to demonstrate willingness to normalize its relations with the Cypriot government before an EU summit next March, Cypriot Foreign Minister George Iacovou said Monday.
Speaking ahead of an EU summit at the end of this week that will decide whether to launch accession negotiations with Turkey, Iacovou said Cyprus expected Ankara to move on the issue at "the spring Council of 2005".
Iacovou had earlier evoked the threat of Cyprus vetoing Turkey's EU bid unless the country formally recognises his internationally backed government, rather than the breakaway Turkish-Cypriot republic.
But he told reporters at EU foreign ministers' talks here: "We have not asked for legally defined recognition but normalisation of relations in general and in particular, in the bilateral field."

12/13/2004 16:28 GMT - AFP