Athens/Nicosia, July 08, SPA -- The two leaders of the ethnically dividedIsland of Cyprus will decide on July 25 whether to proceed to directreunification talks, Cypriot President Dimitris Christofias saidTuesday. Christofias and Turkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat have heldseveral meetings to discuss progress made by working and technicalgroups striving to set the groundwork for the start of peace talks toend the decades-old division of the island, DPA reported. The leaders have not set an exact date for the start of the talksbut diplomatic officials expect it to take place sometime in theautumn. "At the next meeting with Talat on July 25 and after a finalreview of results and work of preparatory teams we will decidewhether to move to direct talks," Christofias told a news conferenceto mark 120 days since his election as president in February. A panel of six working groups and seven technical committees fromboth sides of the ethnic divide have been meeting on a regular basissince mid-April in an attempt to prepare for the talks. The team of experts are working on a range of issues ranging fromenvironmental protection, health, security, power-sharing, culture,ways of linking the island's two economies as well as property andterritory disputes.--SPA www.spa.gov.sa/572040