Brussels - The election victory by the National Unity Party (UBP) in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) should not derail reunification talks with the Greek half of the island, European Union officials said Monday.

"We do not think that the outcome of the elections in the northern part of Cyprus should have a direct bearing on the negotiating process," said Krisztina Nagy, spokeswoman for EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn said in Brussels.

Nagy stressed that TRNC President Mehmet Ali Talat had been elected on a "pro-solution ticket" and that he remains in charge of the negotiation process on the Turkish side.

Final results of this weekend's election in northern Cyprus showed the conservative UBP taking 26 seats in the 50-seat parliament, receiving around 44 per cent of the vote and easily defeating the former governing left-wing Republican Turkish Party (CTP).

The UBP favours close ties with Turkey and opposes reunification with Greek Cypriots.

Analysts have said that while the change in government in the TRNC will not directly affect reunification talks, it could put pressure on President Talat to take a harder line.

UBP leader Dervis Eroglu supports a two-state solution but on Sunday night said he would support the talks.

The Greek Republic of Cyprus joined the EU in 2004 in a decision that a number of top officials in Brussels now privately say was a diplomatic failure.

The eastern Mediterranean island has been divided into a Greek Cypriot south and Turkish Cypriot north since 1974, when Turkey invaded in response to a coup by Greek Cypriots seeking unification of the island with mainland Greece. (dpa)