Greek and Turkish Cypriots talk business in Athens

By Jean Christou

PROMINENT Greek and Turkish Cypriot industrialists will meet in Athens today to promote better relations between the two sides.

A delegation of Greek Cypriot businessmen including former Foreign Minister Alecos Michaelides, Constantinos Lordos and former Keve chairman Phanos Epiphaniou left the island for Athens yesterday.

A 10-strong delegation from the north left the island on Wednesday.

The Athens meeting which mainly concerns Greek and Turkish businessmen began yesterday. The Cypriot delegations will join today for a one-day discussion on promoting co-operation between all concerned.

Before leaving the island yesterday, Epiphaniou said the aim of the delegation was to promote business between the two sides to help towards a solution.

Difficulties that might be encountered under a federal solution may also be discussed.

He stressed, however,that at the current stage no joint ventures between the two sides were under way.

“Our aim is not to go today to set up businesses,” Epiphaniou said. “This must be made clear.”

He said the Athens meeting was a continuation of a similar meeting held in Istanbul earlier this year.

The Istanbul meeting was followed within a week by a gathering of Greek and Turkish Cypriot businessmen at the Ledra Palace.

“The positive outcome of those meetings cannot be defined, but there was a tangible willingness,” Epiphaniou said.

He said although no deals had yet come from the meetings, “if and when there is a solution to the Cyprus problem,” the two sides will have to work together. He suggested an analysis of the different growth rates of the island’s two economies be drawn up and the gap studied “so that we can see how this can be breached at a future stage”.

“We believed there must be an infrastructural base for business co- operation and free communication,” Epiphaniou said.

He stressed, however, that the Greek Cypriot businessmen would not take any steps which would be contrary to the government’s policy on the handling of the Cyprus problem.

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