[01] P>

In a letter of condolences sent to the Turkish President Suleyman Demirel, the President of the Republic Mr. Glafcos Clerides expressed his ódeep sorrow about the catastrophic earthquake which has struck Turkeyò and extended his and the Cypriot people's ódeep sympathy for this terrible catastropheò, conveying to the families of the victims sincere condolences.

The volume of aid to be sent to Turkey will depend on Red Cross needs.

[02] P>

The United States Trademark Trial and Appeal Board this week struck down a Danish challenge and ruled in favour of Cyprus, by identifying Cyprus as "the source of Halloumi cheese".

"This decision upholds and reaffirms our basic contention that the name "halloumi" is not generic, that the cheese is a distinctive product indigenous to Cyprus, in fact part of the fabric of our national history and culture, and thus can only be made using the historic method unique to Cyprus", said Dennis Droushiotis, Cyprus' Commercial Counsellor in New York.

He added that the decision safeguards Cyprus' increasingly valuable commercial right to the "Halloumi" cheese, retail sales of which in the US alone now exceed $5 million annually.

The success of the Halloumi cheese also paves the way for the introduction of other Cypriot cheeses such as Anari, Feta, Kefalotyri and most recently a chevre type goat cheese.

The petition to cancel the registered Halloumi mark was brought in 1991 by the Danish Dairy Board, a quasi-governmental instrumentality of the Kingdom of Denmark, against the Cyprus Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Tourism, which had originally been granted the Certification Mark by the US Patent and Trademark Office in April 1990.

[03] P>

The Commissioners Designate for Enlargement, Guenther Verheugen, and for Foreign Affairs, Ch Patten, in replies to written questions submitted to them by the European Parliament, also said that "the Commission, together with the Member States and the other parties involved, will try to persuade Turkey to participate in this initiative.

To a question concerning the accession of Cyprus to the EU in its current state, they said this could be problematic, but expressed the hope the recent efforts within the framework of the UN and the ongoing accession negotiations will reinforce each other and so create conditions under which, as the EU Council said, "the accession of Cyprus should benefit all communities".

The EU's negotiations with Cyprus should continue as normal but that every opportunity should be taken to call again on the Turkish Cypriot community to accept President Clerides' invitation to take part in these negotiations.

"In addition we should continue to finance bi-community projects and so support the initiatives of Cypriot civil society to reestablish dialogue."

In November this year a 2 100 000 ECU programme for the rapprochement of the two communities will be presented to the MED Committee. In particular the programme would establish a Cypriot liaison office in Brussels where Greek and Turkish Cypriots could work together on areas of common interest such as the accession of Cyprus to the EU.

From the Republic of Cyprus Press and Information Office (PIO) Server at http://www.pio.gov.cy/

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