LUXEMBOURG — The European Union on Thursday approved $311 million in aid to the Turkish part of Cyprus -- a reward for voting in favor of a UN plan to reunify their island.

The overwhelming 'no' vote on the Greek side of Cyprus will keep the island divided, so Cyprus will not join the European Union on May 1 as a united state. Rather, EU laws and benefits will apply only to Greek Cypriots living in the island's south, according to a deal negotiated with European leaders.

To compensate for the exclusion of the Turkish side, the union's ministers Thursday asked the bloc's executive commission to ease trade restrictions on that side.

"The issue has been approved without discussion," said French Justice Minister Dominique Perben.

EU foreign ministers already decided Monday to back the measures in principle, and the aid and trade plan for Turkish Cyprus was rushed through so it could be approved before the May 1 expansion of the union from 15 to 25 members.

In Brussels, EU spokesman Jean Christophe Filori said the measures should be a "first step to bringing the two communities closer together." Cyprus has been divided since Turkey invaded in 1974 following a coup by supporters of union with Greece.

The UN reunification plan drafted by UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan was backed by the EU and United States. Turkish Cypriots favored the plan because they saw it as a means to greater prosperity and EU membership.

Greek Cypriots appear to have rejected the plan because it did not provide for the return to homes in the north by Greek Cypriots who fled south in 1974, allowed Turkish troops to stay too long and did not address their security fears.

On Thursday, the bloc said it still hopes to see a united Cyprus eventually become an EU member.

The EU does not officially recognize the division of Cyprus, so legally it has to regard the whole island as a member when Cyprus joins. However, since only the Greek Cypriot government is recognized by the international community, membership will, in effect, only apply to the south.

But the EU wants to help the Turkish part of the island out of its economic isolation.

Once the island joins the EU, Greek Cypriot authorities will have to end restrictions on EU citizens wishing to travel between the two parts of the island, bloc officials said.

The EU head office also is putting together a proposal that would allow duty-free access to the EU for all products "wholly" made or grown, like fruits and vegetables, in the Turkish part of the island. That proposal is expected to be approved in the next few weeks, officials said.

But because the goods will have to be routed through the Greek south, EU officials said Turkish Cypriots will have to rely on the good will of their Greek neighbors to send the goods to European markets.