22/04/2003 (Agence Europe) The Republic of Cyprus "is in favour of free circulation of all of its legal citizens throughout the territory of the Republic. The limits put in place by the occupation regime in the north are illegal. For this reason, we salute all developments that remove this illegal practice", stated the Press Bureau of the Cyprian Republic, according to a Cyprian diplomat in response to the decision announced Monday by Turkish Cypriots to place restrictions on the circulation of people between the two parts of the divided island. A little earlier in the afternoon, the spokesperson for the Republic had stressed another issue, affirming that this was a matter of "an attempt to divert the attention of the international community from the negative attitude on the part of the Turks regarding the peace efforts of the United Nations", according to remarks reported by the Cyprian Press Agency CNA. The island has been divided since 1974 between the Greek and Turkish Cypriots. On 16 April in Athens, authorities of the Cyprian Republic signed the treaty to join the EU. The application of this decision in the north will be suspended as long as the island is divided.