Cyprus’ rival leaders ended their first major meeting aimed at reunifying the war-divided island today, with negotiations to continue next week.

Rival Greek and Turkish leaders in Cyprus today launched a new round of peace talks, seen as the most promising bid to reunite the island since war tore it apart 34 years ago.

Leaders of Cyprus’ rival communities will hold reunification talks today, seen as the best chance in years of ending the island’s division.

Britain is “very hopeful” that full-fledged talks to reunify ethnically divided Cyprus will be launched in September, a senior Foreign Office official said today.

The leaders of Cyprus’s rival Greek and Turkish Cypriot communities were meeting today to try to clear up disagreements which have strained attempts to reunify the ethnically divided island.

Greek and Turkish Cypriot leaders agreed today to resume peace talks on reunifying the island, and to open a crossing in the heart of the divided capital.

Cyprus’ new president pledged to open new crossing points on the divided island and to work towards demilitarising it under a possible reunification deal.

The decades-long division of Cyprus could be resolved by the end of the year, the leader of the breakaway Turkish Cypriots said today.

Cypriots will vote for a new president today, choosing between a right-wing former foreign minister and the head of a reformed communist party, who share a vision for new talks to end the island’s division.

Cypriot President Tassos Papadopoulos was eliminated today from Cyprus’ presidential run-off in a major surprise after a cliff-hanger election that saw three candidates neck-and-neck until the last minute.