Greek Cypriots destroy barrier, want Turkish pullout

NICOSIA (Reuters) - Greek Cypriots earned international praise on Friday for tearing down an emblem of the island's division but Turkey appeared in no rush to respond to calls to remove its troops from the area.

Bulldozers on Thursday tore down part of the wall that has split Nicosia for more than 40 years, as onlookers on both sides likened the move to the demolition of the Berlin Wall in 1989.

Cyprus made clear that no access to civilians would be given unless Turkey removed its troops from the area. Turkey has not responded to the move, which some analysts say was aimed at putting Ankara on the spot during an EU summit in Brussels.

The island's division remains a stumbling block to Turkey's aspirations to join the EU and a source of tension with neighboring Greece, its historical rival.

Turkey is unlikely to make a major gesture on Cyprus ahead of parliamentary and presidential elections this year but the European Union hailed the demolition as a courageous decision and said it was ready to fund works at the crossing point.

"The long-awaited opening of the crossing point would be a major symbolic step forward in bringing both communities in Nicosia closer together," Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn said. "It would also encourage the necessary efforts aiming at a comprehensive settlement of the Cyprus problem."

Greek Cypriots voted against a U.N. reunification plan shortly before joining the EU in 2004. Both sides have been under intense pressure from the international community for the past few years to strike a lasting peace deal.

"EMPTY GESTURE"

One Turkish official in Ankara called the barrier removal an empty gesture that came after pressure from abroad.

"Their condition about removing the military is irrelevant because our army is not located in that area," the official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Reuters.

Greek and Turkish Cypriots have been able to cross the Green Line at other checkpoints since 2003, but the Ledra Street barrier is a powerful symbol of the Mediterranean island's violent history and ethnic division.

"A cynic could say the Greek Cypriots were squeezed into making a conciliatory gesture but if this shows goodwill, then it's the best news since sliced bread," said a Western diplomat in Nicosia.

In December, Turkish Cypriots tore down a footbridge on their side of Ledra street, a move opposed by Greek Cypriots who said security concerns had not been addressed.

By dawn on Friday, a corridor of crumbling buildings untouched for decades was exposed and quickly covered up with aluminum sheets. Beyond the 50 meter (yard) wide buffer zone, which is manned by U.N. troops, Turkish soldiers are stationed on either side of the road.

"I used to cycle through here to work at a shoe factory in 1956, but then the troubles started," said Nicosia resident Andreas Lambionides.

"None of us deserved this," said Lambionides, now a frail pensioner at 79, leaning on his walking stick as he gazed at an area out of bounds to civilians for decades.

The United Nations peacekeeping mission in Cyprus said it was ready to assist in opening up the crossing.

"This will include measures to shore up dangerous buildings in the immediate buffer zone area, plus a sweep of the area to ensure that it is free of unexploded ordinance," said Michael Moller, the U.N. mission chief in Cyprus.

Cyprus's closest ally, Greece, said it hoped Turkey would respond to the gesture and Britain, once Cyprus's colonial rule, said it wished it would lead to peace negotiations.

Cyprus has been split into an internationally recognized Greek Cypriot south and a Turkish Cypriot north, recognized only by Turkey, since 1974 when Turkish troops invaded the island in response to an Athens-backed coup in Nicosia. Turkey has about 35,000 troops in the island's north.

(Additional reporting by Simon Bahceli, Gareth Jones and Zerin Elci in Ankara)