Annan invites Greece, Turkey and UK to meeting on Cyprus deal next week

United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan has written to Greece, Turkey and the United Kingdom inviting their leaders to be represented at The Hague next week when he meets with the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot parties on a plan that would enable a united Cyprus to join the European Union.

A spokesman for the Secretary-General said Mr. Annan is looking to the guarantor states "for their support of his efforts so that The Hague meeting has a successful outcome and the separate simultaneous referenda go ahead on 30 March."

Last week, the Greek Cypriot leader, Tassos Papadopoulos, and the Turkish Cypriot leader, Rauf Denktash, accepted the Secretary-General's invitation to meet on 10 March in The Hague to give their response to his proposed settlement plan.

Yesterday, Mr. Annan said he was pleased with the support he received in the Security Council for his efforts to assist the parties in Cyprus reach a comprehensive settlement. He also stressed that he hoped that when the two leaders arrive at the meeting they will have undertaken all the internal consultations "and come ready to give me a definitive answer."