ENLARGEMENT Commissioner Günter Verheugen expressed concern at an apparent hardening of Turkey’s attitude over Cyprus.

Date: 18/01/01

Verheugen said he was worried that comments by Turkish Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit and Turkish Cypriot leader Rauf Denktas indicated they were less willing to compromise on the issue. He stressed there would be no separate accession negotiations with Northern Cyprus and that it was "absolutely illusory" to think that the territory might join the EU as part of Turkey.