Time to resolve Cyprus problem: GUL

Turkish President Abdullah Gul has stressed the importance of the need to reach a peace agreement on the divided island of Cyprus under current UN-sponsored talks after 40 years of political deadlock.

Speaking at an anniversary ceremony in Lefkosa, he said: "There are very few conflicts lasting for 50 years in the world. Therefore it is time to resolve this conflict."

The island of Cyprus has remained divided into Greek and Turkish sides since a Greek Cypriot coup was followed by a Turkish peace mission to aid Turkish Cypriots in the north in 1974.

Gul said: "Operation Atilla provided freedom to Turkish Cypriots excluded from the country they established and shared with Greeks and let them look to the future with confidence.

"The date July 20 is a way to remember the strong will [that existed] to protect Turkish Cypriots' ideal of equality, rights, and laws for peace and security."

The president hoped current UN-sponsored talks, as well as practical developments such as a water supply project between Turkey and Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, or TRNC, would bring about a permanent and fair resolution to the island.

Referring to a 2004 plan put forward by former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan to reunify the Turkish Cypriot and Greek Cypriot communities, Gul said: "Both the EU and the UN supported the peace plan in 2004. I hope that such an environment can be established again."

The plan was defeated by a "no" vote in a referendum on the Greek portion of the island, while Turkish Cypriots voted in favor of the Annan plan.

By highlighting the vote Gul said, "We should always remember this incident," he said. "There may be some people who wish to see it disappear from our memories. We should keep our sincerity alive as we wanted to show it at the ballot box."

Gul said open-ended negotiations, without a timetable, had lost the island a chance to arrive at a permanent peace deal.

He added: "If a partnership-driven solution is not possible, then other alternatives should be on the table - we should consider negotiating different solution alternatives."

Turkish Cypriot President Dervis Eroglu recalled the 1974 peace mission as saving Turkish Cypriots from "mass graves and captivity." He also emphasized that the Turkish peace mission paved the way for permanent peace in the island.

Speaking in a joint press conference with his TRNC counterpart, Dervis Eroglu, Gul said: "There has been a tranquil situation on the island for 40 years - not a peace deal."

Eroglu decorated Gul with a state medal during the visit for his services to Turkish Cyprus state.

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who is running for president next month, sent a letter to Eroglu promising support and praising TRNC's dedication to democracy and the rule of law.

Turkish troops arrived in northern Cyprus on July 20, 1974 to protect Turkish Cypriots threatened by a right-wing Greek Cypriot coup. ''Operation Atilla'' safeguarded the Turkish population and the junta collapsed.

A de facto ceasefire has existed between the two parts since that date.

The latest round of negations in the island started in February