03 May 2004	Monday	12 Rabi-ul-Awwal 1425

WASHINGTON, May 2: US Secretary of State Colin Powell will meet a Turkish Cypriot leader in New York next week, the US State Department announced on Saturday.

The meeting with Mehmet Ali Talat, the prime minister of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, will take place at the UN headquarters on May 4, the department said.

The United States does not recognize that Turkish Cyprus became an independent state in 1983. Although the official US position remains unchanged, the Bush administration indicated last week it would be more lenient towards Turkish Cypriots. The change followed a UN-sponsored referendum seeking reunification of the Greek and Turkish Cypriots.

While the Turkish Cypriots voted overwhelmingly for reunification, the Greek Cypriots rejected the proposal. Despite the rejection, Greek Cypriots joined the European Union on May while Turkish Cypriots were not allowed to do so despite voting for reunification.

Both the European Union and the United States, however, have said the Turks will be rewarded for the reunification vote. The European Union pledged 310 million dollars in aid and the Bush administration agreed to an official meeting with the Turkish Cypriot leader.

The European Union also agreed to lift its 30-year-old trade embargo on the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. The US said it would follow the EU example, indicating the Turkish Cypriots may get economic assistance from Washington as well.

The United States and the European Union had both backed the UN-sponsored referendum and had urged both Greek and Turkish Cypriots to vote for reunification.