The World : Cyprus Elects New Leader

George Vassiliou, a 56-year-old Communist-backed millionaire, defeated a veteran conservative opponent to become president of Cyprus. With 90% of the vote counted in a second round of balloting, Vassiliou had 51.53% of the votes and Glafcos Clerides had 48.47%. It was the first closely contested election since independence from Britain in 1960. Clerides, 68, and Vassiliou eliminated incumbent Spyros Kyprianou on Feb. 14 in the first round in the Greek part of the Mediterranean island. Vassiliou, head of the largest market research company in the Middle East, promised during the campaign that as head of the Greek Cypriot government he would push for reunification talks with the Turkish side of the divided island.