The US government is ready to assist efforts to solve the Cyprus problem, but proposals on next steps should come from Cypriots and not from the international community, US Ambassador to Cyprus Michael Klosson said in Nicosia Wednesday.

"We are prepared to assist settlement efforts, but proposals on next steps must come from Nicosia, not foreign capitals. Renewed steps toward a solution must begin with those on the island who have to grasp it, live with it," Klosson said.

Addressing the annual General Meeting of the Cyprus-American Business Association in Nicosia, Klosson said that the solution would be by necessity a compromise and said that people in Cyprus should be prepared by their leaderships to accept a compromise.

"We would be delighted if Cypriots could take matters in their own hands and present the UN Security Council with a negotiated solution. Unfortunately, there is no reason to expect that any timesoon," he said.

The US diplomat said that there was now stalemate in the Cyprus issue and said that the international community could not answer the question about how to overcome the current situation.

"The international community cannot answer that question for Cypriots. In recent months, much has been said about the role of the international community, real or imagined," he said.

Klosson added that the question that has to be answered now was what steps should be made so that both communities in Cyprus vote in favour of UN Secretary General Kofi Annan's plan for a solution of the Cyprus problem.

In a referendum in April, Greek Cypriots rejected the Annan planwhile the Turkish Cypriots approved it, thus making the plan null and void.

"Outsiders cannot weigh those concerns and answer those questions. We need to hear feasible answers first from Cypriots in order to assess how we might assist," the US diplomat said.

He said that Cyprus would not be able to achieve its full potential as a strong partner within the European Union, with the United States or in the region as long as the Cyprus problem persists.

He said that the security situation on the island was better andCyprus' accession to the EU gave Greek Cypriots a greater sense of security, which could diminish some concerns about the Annan Plan.

Klosson also called on the international community to take concrete steps to ease the isolation of Turkish Cypriots and promote their economic development.

Such steps will enhance prospects for an eventual settlement andreunification, he said.

Regarding a 30.5 million dollars US assistance program for the Turkish Cypriots, he said that a team of experts was already on theisland to examine the best ways to use the assistance.

Cyprus, an east Mediterranean island, has been divided into the Turkish-Cypriot north and the Greek-Cypriot south since 1974 when Turkish troops entered the north of the island after a failed Greek-Cypriot coup seeking union with Greece.

Compared with the internationally recognized south, the northernone-third of the island ran by the Turkish Cypriot authority is only recognized by Turkey.

On May 1, only the south joined the EU alone with nine other European countries.

Source: Xinhua