Turkish Cypriot leader Mr Rauf Denktash said today he would travel to New York after receiving an invitation from UN Secretary-General Mr Kofi Annan to attend renewed Cyprus peace talks.
But Mr Denktash, a strong opponent of a UN plan to end the decades-old division of the island, told reporters this did not mean he accepted negotiations on Mr Annan's terms.
"I will be giving Mr Kofi Annan a letter outlining our objections," he said, adding that he would leave for New York on Sunday.
Mr Denktash is known to be unhappy with Mr Annan's preconditions for restarting the talks, which collapsed last March after the Turkish Cypriot leader said it was biased against his community.
Mr Annan has insisted that both sides must agree as a precondition for the talks going ahead to hold joint referendums on his peace blueprint on April 21st.
Mr Denktash is under heavy pressure from his patron Turkey to return to the talks and to work for a swift deal before Cyprus joins the European Union on May 1st. Without a settlement, only the internationally recognised Greek Cyriot government will join the EU.
This would deepen the isolation of the Turkish Cypriots - whose "state" only Ankara recognises - and deal a blow to Turkey's own hopes of winning a date in December from EU leaders to open entry talks.
