The 22^nd anniversary of the establishment of the TRNC will be celebrated on 15 November with various ceremonies and activities.

Representatives from the Turkish Presidency, Turkish Grand National Assembly, Turkish Government and Turkish Chief of Staff will attend the celebrations as well as approximately 30 journalists, academics and MP's from 16 different countries.

Within the framework of the anniversary celebrations the Turkish A National Handball Team will have a match with the TRNC Handball Mixed Team Federation.

The official ceremonies will commence on Tuesday 15 November with President Mehmet Ali Talat receiving the public at the Presidency, followed by the official parade and Republic Festival in Nicosia.

Pointing out that the Greek Cypriot administration was putting conditions so as not to release the 259 million Euros of EU aid to the Turkish Cypriot side, Undersecretary to the President Rasit Pertev said "the conditions had something to do with Varosha".

Speaking to the Greek Cypriot daily 'The Cyprus Mail', yesterday (10 November) Pertev said the Greek Cypriot administration was trying to prevent the financial aid package proposed by the European Commission to ease the isolations imposed on the Turkish Cypriot side.

Pertev said it was wrong to say the Greek Cypriot administration 'vetoed' the EU financial aid regulation. "Technically it is not a veto, but they are doing their best to make it impossible for the Turkish Cypriots to get the money by putting conditions in the way" he said.

For the Turkish Cypriot side to get the 259 million Euros in financial aid the regulation must be approved by the EU by the end of the year otherwise it will be removed from the EU's 2005 budget.

Turkey has allocated approximately 207 million US Dollars in its 2006 budget for the TRNC.

According to information obtained from the Finance Ministry, it is envisaged that approximately 74 million US Dollars will be used for current expenditure and approximately 133 million US Dollars for capital expenditure.

In a conference at the European Parliament entitled, "Opportunities for a Cyprus Settlement after 3 October and the EU's Role" it was stressed that it was the Greek Cypriot side that was preventing a settlement in Cyprus.

Speaking at the conference, Dr. Jerry Sommer from the German NGO, the Bonn International Centre for Conversion, said promises given to the Turkish Cypriot side should be kept otherwise it would be difficult to achieve a settlement. He said the Greek Cypriot side used the security issue as an excuse to vote against the Annan Plan, but this didn't reflect the realities because if there was a settlement according to the Annan Plan only 650 Turkish soldiers would remain on the island. Sommer also reminded that because of Turkey's EU perspective there wouldn't be any military threat from Turkey to the Greek Cypriot side.