Irish EU envoy predicts big push to reunite island before accession talks

WINDING up a week long visit to Cyprus, the envoy of the Irish Presidency of the EU Council of Ministers, Mr Kester Heaslip, asserted, "I do think there is going to be a big push in 97" to reunite the island. This will be before accession talks which are scheduled to begin at the end of next year or early in 1998.

Mr Heaslip will participate in this "push" because he has been asked by the Dutch to stay on as the envoy of the presidency for the next six months.

In an interview with The Irish Times. Mr Heaslip said he had been preceded by a series of other European envoys, demonstrating a keen interest in resolving the Cyprus problem. The mid December visit of the British Foreign Secretary, Mr Malcolm Rifkind, was, on its own, "evidence of this push", he said.

The Cyprus Foreign Minister, Mr Alecos Michaelides, told Mr Heaslip that the US would lend its weight once a new State Department team had been appointed. The various envoys seek to boost the UN effort to mediate a settlement based on a plan for a bizonal, bicommunal federation.

Next week the Special Representative of the UN Secretary General, Mr Han Sun Joo, a former South Korean foreign minister, will be here to prepare for an extended stay in January. Mr Heaslip said Mr Han would "arrange proximity talks" between the Greek and Turkish Cypriots to "organise common ground or something that can be presented as common ground" so direct talks between the Cyprus President, Mr Glalkos Clerides, and the Turkish Cypriot leader, Mr Rauf Denktash, could begin.

"Direct negotiations will lead we hope, to an internal settlement in Cyprus ... and ... a successful conclusion will make it possible for a federal, bizonal, bicommunal Cyprus to negotiate with the European Union" on accession. "Thus, we have a period of one year ... for the parties on Cyprus to reach a successful conclusion to negotiations . . . It is our intention, our wish... that they should not fail."

Mr Heaslip said: "The EU wants to see an outline of a solution in order to make sure [the internal negotiations] are going to succeed" before accession talks begin because "it will be very difficult" to admit Cyprus if the division persisted.

Thus, Mr Heaslip reiterated the position adopted last week by Mr Rifkind, which was greeted with a storm of protest from the Greek Cypriots who had expected to gain EU membership whatever the intercommunal situation.

Local analysts believe the EU is in the difficult, if not impossible, position of seeking to balance a Turkish Cypriot/Turkish veto on Cyprus EU membership with unconditionally opening the door to the Greek Cypriots.

During this visit Mr Heaslip and his colleagues focused their attention on the Turkish Cypriots in an endeavour to persuade them "of the benefits of belonging to a Union which was originally set up to reconcile old and bitter enemies and which has succeeded beyond all expectations."

Asked if Mr Denktash remained hostile to the EU, Mr Heaslip replied: "We tried to reconcile Mr Denktash to the idea that the EUI could make a positive contribution, but I am not claiming we succeeded."

The EU mission had mixed success with Turkish Cypriot businessmen who were not confident their firms would profit in the EU context. The most enthusiastic Turkish Cypriots encountered were the leaders of the independent Communal Liberation and Republican Turkish parties "who," Mr Heaslip said "were eager to start co operating with their opposite numbers" across the Green Line.