[Congressional Bills 113th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 187 Introduced in House (IH)]

113th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. RES. 187

  Expressing the United States commitment to the reunification of the 
  Republic of Cyprus and the establishment of a unified government on 
 Cyprus that guarantees the human rights of all Cypriots and condemns 
any attempt to use the current economic crisis as a means of imposing a 
      settlement on the people of Cyprus, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 26, 2013

 Mr. Bilirakis (for himself, Mrs. Carolyn B. Maloney of New York, Mr. 
   Grimm, Mr. Sires, Ms. Titus, Mr. Sarbanes, Mr. McGovern, and Mr. 
Pallone) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the 
                      Committee on Foreign Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
  Expressing the United States commitment to the reunification of the 
  Republic of Cyprus and the establishment of a unified government on 
 Cyprus that guarantees the human rights of all Cypriots and condemns 
any attempt to use the current economic crisis as a means of imposing a 
      settlement on the people of Cyprus, and for other purposes.

Whereas the Republic of Cyprus is an independent and sovereign nation-state 
        within the community of nations;
Whereas the Republic of Cyprus, the only internationally recognized and legal 
        entity on the island of Cyprus is a member state of the United Nations, 
        the European Union and other international organizations which are vital 
        to the community of nations;
Whereas the Republic of Cyprus has the lawful authority and power to perform and 
        exercise the functions of government on and within the island of Cyprus;
Whereas Republic of Turkey's military unlawfully invaded Cyprus in July 1974;
Whereas the Turkish military illegally occupies northern Cyprus and the Turkish 
        Government in Ankara exercises significant influence there, thereby 
        forcibly excluding the Government of the Republic of Cyprus from 
        performing and exercising its lawful governing functions;
Whereas 180,000 displaced persons in Cyprus experience violations of their 
        fundamental human rights as they continue to be excluded from their 
        property lawfully held under the laws of the Republic of Cyprus as a 
        result of the Turkish invasion and continued occupation;
Whereas on May 10, 2001, the European Court of Human Rights found the Republic 
        of Turkey liable for damages incurred by the Republic of Cyprus directly 
        caused by the Republic of Turkey;
Whereas the Republic of Cyprus became a member state of the European Union in 
        2004 and joined the Eurozone in 2008;
Whereas the people of the Republic of Cyprus have been suffering from an 
        economic downturn as the result of the effects of adverse events which 
        have occurred and continue to occur in the global economy;
Whereas significant deposits of valuable resources have been discovered in the 
        Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of the Republic of Cyprus;
Whereas this discovery is potentially significant for the energy security of 
        Europe;
Whereas the United States Government supports the sovereign rights of the 
        Republic of Cyprus to explore hydrocarbon deposits in their respective 
        EEZs;
Whereas the Republic of Turkey has threatened and continues to threaten to 
        prevent the Republic of Cyprus from developing its hydrocarbon reserves 
        including through military action;
Whereas the Republic of Turkey and some press commentators have argued that, 
        given the current economic crisis in the Republic of Cyprus, the people 
        of the Republic of Cyprus could be forced to abandon their terms to 
        reunify the island of Cyprus;
Whereas if Turkey continues with this approach, the island of Cyprus could be 
        permanently divided along ethnic lines; and
Whereas the policy concepts set forth in Section 610C of the Foreign Assistance 
        Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2373), provide in part for ``a just settlement on 
        Cyprus which must involve the establishment of an independent, unified 
        government on Cyprus and must guarantee that the human rights of all of 
        the people of Cyprus are fully protected'' and that ``a just settlement 
        on Cyprus must include the withdrawal of all Turkish military forces 
        from Cyprus'': Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives calls on the Secretary 
of State to--
            (1) reaffirm the United States commitment to the 
        reunification of the Republic of Cyprus and the establishment 
        of a unified government on Cyprus that guarantees the human 
        rights of all Cypriots and condemns any attempt to use the 
        current economic crisis as a means of imposing a settlement on 
        the people of Cyprus;
            (2) condemn any attempt to use the current economic crisis 
        as a means of imposing a settlement on the people of the 
        Republic of Cyprus;
            (3) affirm that negotiations for a solution to the problems 
        the Republic of Cyprus faces should only resume once the 
        appropriate preparations take place, so as to ensure that these 
        will be meaningful and result-oriented, allowing for 
        substantial progress and real prospects for a solution; and
            (4) communicate through all available means that the United 
        States affirms its policy that the Republic of Cyprus has 
        exclusive dominion and control over its Exclusive Economic Zone 
        (EEZ) and the right to exploit the resources in its EEZ.
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