TURKISH CYPRIOTS MAKE KEY CONCESSION

An American mediator says Turkish Cypriots have agreed to return some territory seized in the 1974 invasion, a key sticking-point in efforts to reunite the divided island, Greek Cypriot newspapers reported Wednesday.Identical front page reports in all six Greek Cypriot dailies quoted United States State Department Cyprus coordinator Nelson Ledsky as saying Turkey was willing to relinquish 7 to 12 percent of the 37 percent of the island it occupies. The leading daily Philelephteros said Mr. Ledsky met leaders of Greek Cypriot political parties Tuesday and told them the Turkish Cypriots would receive economic aid. This would compensate for the reduction in land, and bridge differences in living standards between the Greek Cypriots and the less affluent Turkish Cypriot community. Philelephteros said Ledsky was "absolutely certain" that an international conference on Cyprus proposed by President Bush would take place in the US next month.