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The article focuses on stalled negotiations for Turkey's membership in the European Union (EU). According to the article, relationships between Turkey and the EU have been harmed by the stalled negotiations and demands that Turkey allow open access to its ports for ships sailing from Cyprus, which is an island divided between Greece and Turkey. According to public opinion polls, interest in EU membership has dropped below 50% in Turkey; the implications of an isolated Turkey are discussed.

The article looks at relations between Turkey and Cyprus as of April 23, 2005. After leading the Turkish Cypriots for over three decades, Rauf Denktash, the mulish president of the self-proclaimed Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, is at last stepping down in favour of his determinedly pro-European rival, Mehmet Ali Talat. Mr Talat easily won the presidential election on April 17th, on a platform of reuniting the divided island and joining the European Union. The departure of Mr Denktash is being hailed by pro-peace Turks and Greeks as a step towards ending Cyprus's 30-year-old division. But can Mr Talat, an engineer who once made a living from repairing fridges, make a difference? Despite welcoming noises from Ankara, Brussels and Nicosia, few observers think he will do so quickly. With a spasm of nationalist violence erupting across Anatolia (aimed in some cases against Kurds), and with polls showing falling support among Turks for EU membership, Turkish prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's words have raised new questions about his commitment to joining the EU. The government agreed last year to formalise relations with all ten of the EU's new members, including Cyprus, as a condition for its own entry talks to begin on October 3rd. An intra-EU legal wrangle has delayed implementation of the deal, preventing the long-promised easing of trade and air-travel restrictions on the Turkish Cypriots, and adding to frustration among Turkey's leaders.