Turkish Prime Minister says his country will not sit at the table with Greek Cyprus if it assumes the European Union's presidency before a deal reunifying the ethnically split island is reached.

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has already warned that Turkey will freeze its relations with the 27-nation bloc if Greek Cyprus takes over its rotating presidency in July 2012.

Erdogan spoke during a televised address to members of his Justice and Development Party (AK Party) in the town of Kizilcahamam, near the Turkish capital of Ankara. He reiterated Turkey's wish that a unified Greek Cyprus takes over the EU presidency, Today’s Zaman reported.

After Turkish military occupation of northern Cyprus in 1974, the island was divided into the “Greek” south and the “Turkish” north.