UN Secretary-General praises Turkey's role in Iran and Cyprus

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has praised Turkey for its role in a recent nuclear fuel swap deal with Iran and for its efforts on Cyprus. Pointing out that no timetable is determined for Cyprus negotiations, Ban said, “This does not mean that the UN expects the talks to continue on forever.” Stating that he took courage from newly elected TRNC President Dervis Eroglu’s remarks that he would continue negotiations from where they halted, Ban said, “I appreciate the leadership Erdogan has shown in the course of the talks.” He said that Erdogan’s remarks that he strongly supported Cyprus negotiations accelerated the negotiations. In related news, Ban will visit Istanbul this Friday to attend a two-day international conference on the restructuring of Somalia.