Cypriots lukewarm to British offer to return land

Cypriots gave a guarded response to Britain's offer to hand back half its remaining three percent of Cyprus's landmass if rival sides on the ethnically split island reach a peace deal.
Former colonial power Britain on Tuesday offered to give up the two pockets of militarily strategic, prime undeveloped real estate in the south of the island which was split in a Turkish invasion triggered by a brief Greek inspired coup.
The offer is contingent on a long-elusive peace deal between Cyprus's estranged Greek and Turkish Cypriots engaged in reunification negotiations for more than a year. It was made to the United Nations, which is overseeing the peace talks.
"We have not discussed this among ourselves. Hence it is not possible to make an extensive assessment on the subject," said Turkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat.
Greek Cypriots were lukewarm. "What Britain can do if it wants to effectively help this process is to exert influence and encourage Turkey to be more accomodating on the talks," said Markos Kyprianou, Cyprus's foreign minister.
Cyprus's long running conflict is hampering Turkey's bid to join the European Union, and is a source of tension between NATO allies Greece and Turkey. The island is represented in the EU by its Greek Cypriots, who are using that as leverage to gain concessions from Turkey in cracking the conflict.
Greek and Turkish Cypriot sides began talks in September 2008. Diplomats say territorial adjustments would be an integral part of any deal to unite Cyprus as a federation with two semi-autonomous zones — one Greek and one Turkish Cypriot.
Britain's offer to hand over territory amounting to about 1.5 percent of Cyprus's land mass is similar to one made in 2003, when a United Nations reunification blueprint was being discussed by the two sides.
A British air base in southern Cyprus, used to assist operations in Afghanistan and Iraq, is not part of the offer.
Previous reunification proposals have given Greek Cypriots a larger percentage of territory than they now occupy. Diplomats say territorial issues were discussed briefly in the present reunification process without a conclusion.
"This (British offer) could probably be understood as an initiative to put an end to the lack of will on this subject on the part of the Greek Cypriot side," Talat said.
Britain gave up Cyprus in 1960.