The UN will put its revised plan to reunify Cyprus to separate referendums on the Mediterranean island next month, UN chief Kofi Annan announced in Switzerland on Wednesday after the rival communities failed to hammer out a deal.
"The choice is between this settlement and no settlement," he said after marathon talks with leaders of Cyprus' Greek and Turkish communities as well as the Greek and Turkish prime ministers to settle the 30-year crisis.
The talks were aimed at reaching a deal on a revised blueprint drawn up by Annan aimed at reunifying the Mediterranean island before it is due to join the EU on May 1.
"If the referendum is approved, Cyprus will be reunified in time to accede to the EU," the UN secretary-general said.
Annan had given the delegations until midnight Wednesday to support his proposals, or to see them put to a vote across the divided island without their backing.
But the island's rival communities failed to reach an agreement between themselves in the week-long negotiations at a secluded hotel complex in the snow-covered Swiss Alpine resort of Buergenstock.
"Unfortunately it proved impossible to reach an agreed solution," Greek Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis said late Wednesday. "It is now up to the people of Cyprus and its political leadership to make a final decision."
Annan appealed to the two communities to vote "yes" in the referendum to be held April 24.
"There have been too many missed opportunities in the past. For the sake of all of you and your people, I urge you not to make the same mistake again," Annan warned.
But Annan said his plan, which establishes a loose federation with Greek and Turkish Cypriot areas and a central government, "offers the best chance for peace, prosperity and stability that is ever likely to be on offer."
"We have tried to accommodate the express concerns of both sides to create a win-win situation," he said. "I believe we have succeeded."
Tropical Storm Usagi strengthened to a typhoon yesterday morning and remains on track to brush past southeastern Taiwan from tomorrow to Sunday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. As of 2pm yesterday, the storm was approximately 950km east-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan proper’s southernmost point, the CWA said. It is expected to enter the Bashi Channel and then turn north, moving into waters southeast of Taiwan, it said. The agency said it could issue a sea warning in the early hours of today and a land warning in the afternoon. As of 2pm yesterday, the storm was moving at
DISCONTENT: The CCP finds positive content about the lives of the Chinese living in Taiwan threatening, as such video could upset people in China, an expert said Chinese spouses of Taiwanese who make videos about their lives in Taiwan have been facing online threats from people in China, a source said yesterday. Some young Chinese spouses of Taiwanese make videos about their lives in Taiwan, often speaking favorably about their living conditions in the nation compared with those in China, the source said. However, the videos have caught the attention of Chinese officials, causing the spouses to come under attack by Beijing’s cyberarmy, they said. “People have been messing with the YouTube channels of these Chinese spouses and have been harassing their family members back in China,”
UPDATED FORECAST: The warning covered areas of Pingtung County and Hengchun Peninsula, while a sea warning covering the southern Taiwan Strait was amended The Central Weather Administration (CWA) at 5:30pm yesterday issued a land warning for Typhoon Usagi as the storm approached Taiwan from the south after passing over the Philippines. As of 5pm, Usagi was 420km south-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan proper’s southernmost tip, with an average radius of 150km, the CWA said. The land warning covered areas of Pingtung County and the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春), and came with an amended sea warning, updating a warning issued yesterday morning to cover the southern part of the Taiwan Strait. No local governments had announced any class or office closures as of press time last night. The typhoon
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said there are four weather systems in the western Pacific, with one likely to strengthen into a tropical storm and pose a threat to Taiwan. The nascent tropical storm would be named Usagi and would be the fourth storm in the western Pacific at the moment, along with Typhoon Yinxing and tropical storms Toraji and Manyi, the CWA said. It would be the first time that four tropical cyclones exist simultaneously in November, it added. Records from the meteorology agency showed that three tropical cyclones existed concurrently in January in 1968, 1991 and 1992.
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