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By Vincent Boland in Nicosia and Daniel Dombey in Brussels

Published: September 11 2004 03:00 – Last updated: September 11 2004 03:00

The prime minister of the self-styled Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus has accused the European Union of breaking promises to end the enclave’s isolation, made after the United Nations recent failure to end the island’s division.

In remarks that he said were made out of disappointment more than bitterness, Mehmet Ali Talat said Turkish Cypriots might turn against the EU because of its inability to override Greek Cypriot objections to a loosening of the economic stranglehold imposed since 1974, when Turkey invaded to stop a Greek-inspired military coup.

Mr. Talat said the Greek Cypriot government "has not made a single gesture of reconciliation" towards Turkish Cypriots since referendums in April reinforced the island’s division. But he reserved his toughest criticism for the EU, which he said was playing into the hands of Rauf Denktash, the veteran Turkish Cypriot leader who opposed the UN plan.

Turkish Cypriots backed reunification in the referendums, but Greek Cypriots rejected it. The island joined the EU a few days later without a deal, leaving the Turkish side in limbo. Since then, Mr. Talat has been pushing for direct flights from the enclave, especially to London, home to a large Cypriot diaspora, and for companies in northern Cyprus to be able to trade directly with the EU.

"After the referendum result the EU said we would be brought in from the cold, but we have yet to feel any warmth," Mr. Talat said in an interview with the Financial Times. "Ending the international isolation of Turkish Cypriots is not just tactical to improve our lives. It is a strategic matter for the solution of the Cyprus problem".

Diplomats say the EU has backed itself into a corner in its handling of Cyprus because of concessions previously made to the Greek Cypriot side. It had hoped to prevent them from vetoing the start of direct trade with the north by invoking an article in the EU treaty. But the tactic backfired because of Greek Cypriot claims, supported by EU lawyers, that the proposals for direct trade were legally questionable.

Greek Cypriots maintain that the north wants to use direct trade with the EU to edge towards international recognition. Instead, they call for Greek and Turkish Cypriots to manage the northern port of Famagusta jointly, with a two-mile corridor to connect the area to Greek Cypriot territory.

The Greek Cypriot side also rejects the accusation of a lack of reconciliation, arguing that travel between the two parts of Cyprus has become much easier since the referendums.

Mr. Talat denied that there was any desire to seek political recognition for northern Cyprus, which is recognised only by Turkey. But he said he feared that Turkish Cypriots were being forgotten, even by Turkey, which is concerned with its own EU aspirations.

"Turkey’s interest has shifted, which is understandable," Mr. Talat said, speaking at his office in the northern, Turkish Cypriot part of the divided city of Nicosia. "But I’m afraid the international community’s interest in the Turkish Cypriots is also decreasing. The Cyprus problem is now a European problem, and the EU has to deal with it".