Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan planned to launch an initiative to start negotiations on Cyprus by calling for support of the United States, Turkish Cypriot Prime Minister Mehmet Ali Talat said Wednesday.

Talat, who visited Turkey as the guest of Union of Turkish Chambers and Commodity Exchanges (TOBB), made the remarks at Ankara Esenboga Airport before his departure.

"Our target is to solve Cyprus question till May. There are also busy studies in Turkey as well as Cyprus. We are trying to form an atmosphere to bring them together and to start talks," Talat said.

He disclosed that a negotiation process on the basis of UN Secretary General Kofi Annan's plan was envisaged for solution of Cyprus question.

One of the key points of the discussions is expected to be a draft proposal put forward by the Turkish Foreign Ministry to facilitate the resumption of talks aimed at reunifying the Greek
Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot parts on the island, Talat added.

Cyprus, an eastern Mediterranean island, has been divided into the Greek Cypriot-controlled south and Turkish Cypriot-controlled north since the Turkish invasion in 1974 in the wake of a short-lived coup seeking union with Greece.

The United Nations had been trying to find a comprehensive settlement to the Cyprus issue, but its efforts failed earlier last year after Turkish Cypriot leader Rauf Denktash refused to accept a peace plan put forward by Annan that proposed holding simultaneous referendums on the two sides.

More than 35,000 Turkish troops are currently stationed on the northern island for the security of Turkish Cypriots.

(Xinhua News Agency January 22, 2004)