Brussels, 20/06/2003 (Agence Europe) - During a trip to Cyprus this week, where he met Turkish Cypriot leader Rauf Denktash, Enlargement Commissioner Günter Verheugen said that he thinks there is still time to resolve the island's division before its accession next year. We must now make the most of the favourable political climate, caused by the signing of the Accession Treaty and the confidence and facilitation measures recently introduced between the two Cypriot communities, and move talks on, said Mr Verheugen. The EU's objective remains the accession of a reunified island, he stressed, but he made it very clear that even without political regulation, the southern part of the Republic of Cyprus will join the EU on 1 May 2004. Whereas the Greek Cypriots are prepared to re-start reunification talks based on the plan put forward by the Secretary General of the UN, Kofi Anna, Mr Denktash still says this is "unacceptable" and that it is "no longer on the table". In his meeting with Mr Denktash, Mr Verheugen also presented the special aid package proposed by the Commission to boost economic development in Northern Cyprus and facilitate exports to the EU (see EUROPE of 4 June, p.13). The package contains aid of 12 million EUR for 2003 (mainly to co-finance infrastructure projects, support SMEs and reinforce civil society), and the possibility for companies from the north of the island to export industrial products to the EU at the preferential tariffs of the EU/Cyprus Association Agreement. According to Mr Verheugen, these proposals received a mixed reception from Mr Denktash: he agreed to the financial part, "but I regret to say that he was unable to accept our commercial proposals", Mr Verheugen told the Press. The Commission intends to maintain its offer of preferential tariffs, and it will now be up to the Cypriot authorities to decide whether or not to take advantage of them, explained the Commissioner. The special aid package allows the Commission "to express its solidarity with the Turkish Cypriot people and to show that they are very welcome in the EU".