2015 may be the year Cyprus is reunified, say Turkey, US

Turkey and the United States voiced hopes Tuesday that 2015 could be the year when a long-elusive diplomatic solution is finally found to the decades-old division of Cyprus.

"This is a problem that just has gone on for far too long, and it is begging for international efforts to try to help bring about a resolution, a lasting settlement," US Secretary of State John Kerry said as he met with his Turkish counterpart.

Greek and Turkish Cypriots have sought for more than four decades to resolve their split, with about 1,000 peacekeepers monitoring a ceasefire line that cuts through the heart of Nicosia, Europe's last divided capital.

A UN peace envoy announced this month that new negotiations are set to resume to resolve the island's fate.

"The United States and Turkey both support the UN-led negotiations to reunify the island as a bi-zonal, bi-communal federation," Kerry said.

"We believe that the parties can make real and lasting progress in the year 2015."

In 1974, in response to an Athens-engineered coup seeking a union with Greece, Turkish troops invaded northern Cyprus, and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) later unilaterally declared an independent state.

The breakaway enclave, occupying about a third of the Mediterranean island, is recognized by Ankara, but the rest of the world recognizes the Greek Cypriot government.

Cyprus joined the European Union in 2004 still a divided island, and although the north is technically part of the bloc, Turkish Cypriots are denied nearly all of the benefits of EU membership.

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu called for the United States to play an active role in any resumed peace process.

"Turkey and Turkish Cypriots have the political will for a solution, and we are waiting at the negotiating table," he told Kerry. "We are hoping to reach a solution within 2015."

The breakaway enclave is currently voting for a new leadership, after a close first round of polling, with the second round due to be held on Sunday.

"Thanks to the efforts and the support of United States, we can finally reach a (lasting) and fair solution in Cyprus," Cavusoglu said.

Kerry also raised the Cyprus issue in talks Monday with his Greek counterpart Nikos Kotzias.

Last May, Vice President Joe Biden became the highest level US official to visit Cyprus since Lyndon B. Johnson in 1962.

He highlighted the potential role Cyprus could play in the region, due to its offshore gas reserves, whose exploitation for export to Europe has been hampered by the division and a festering dispute with Turkey.