06 February 2004	Friday	14 Zilhaj 1424

UNITED NATIONS, Feb 5: UN Secretary General Kofi Annan has written to the Turkish Cypriot and Greek Cypriot leaders inviting them to New York on Feb 10 to resume talks on his reunification plan for Cyprus.

"The Secretary General wrote today (Wednesday) to the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot leaders inviting them to come to New York on Feb 10, 2004, to resume negotiations on the basis of his plan," Mr Annan's spokesman said in a statement.

The spokesman said Annan had also written to Greek Prime Minister Costas Simitis, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and British Prime Minister Tony Blair asking them to have representatives present in New York for the planned meeting.

Turkish Cypriot leaders met on Wednesday with Erdogan in Ankara, and pledged afterwards to support Annan in his efforts to resolve the decades-old division of Cyprus.

Annan's spokesman said the secretary general was moved to push for the talks following his "encouraging contacts on the Cyprus question during his trip to Europe and afterwards."

The object, he said, would be "to put a completed text to referenda in April, in time for a reunited Cyprus to accede to the European Union on May 1."

DENKTASH NEEDS TIME: Turkish Cypriot leader Rauf Denktash cast doubt on Thursday over whether he would be ready next week for fresh talks on ending the division of Cyprus, saying he needed more time to prepare.

"If there is an invitation for talks on Feb 10, that is technically possible. But if he (Annan) says come to New York on February 10 to resume (peace) negotiations, then there is need for time to prepare," Denktash was quoted by the Anatolia news agency as saying. -AFP