[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 100 (Wednesday, July 27, 1994)]
[Senate]
[Page S]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: July 27, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
                   CYPRUS: 20 YEARS ON JULY 27, 1994

  Mr. BIDEN. Madam President, last week marked the 20th anniversary of 
a tragic event: The invasion of Cyprus by Turkish forces.
  In that fateful month of July 1974, a coup by radical Greek Cypriots, 
instigated by the rightist Junta in Athens, threatened the Turkish 
minority in Cyprus. The plotters sought to unite Cyprus with Greece. 
Turkey, a guarantor of the treaty establishing Cypriot independence, 
sent forces, with two salutary results: The coup on Cyprus failed, and 
the dictatorship in Athens collapsed. Had Turkey withdrawn at that 
point, the world could hardly have complained. A few weeks later, 
however, in the midst of peace talks in Geneva, Turkey launched a 
second invasion, 40,000 troops proceeded to carve the nation in two.
  The invasion was as vicious as it was rapid. Hundreds were killed. 
Nearly 200,000 Greek Cypriots--30 percent of the population--fled their 
homes in northern Cyprus and resettled in the South. To this day, over 
1,500 people--including 5 Americans--remain unaccounted for.
  Alert U.S. diplomacy might have averted tragedy. In the 1960's, 
warnings by President Johnson on two occasions had helped prevent 
Turkish intervention. But a Nixon White House distracted by Watergate 
ignored predictions of the coup on Cyprus, and stood by while Turkey 
launched its invasions.
  Turkey's illegal actions were only briefly punished. The United 
Nations demanded Turkey's immediate withdrawal but enforced no 
sanctions. A partial U.S. arms embargo imposed by Congress lasted just 
4 years.
  Meanwhile, the occupation of northern Cyprus was buttressed by the 
immigration of mainland Turks who were encouraged to settle in Cyprus 
by Ankara. In 1983, Turkish Cypriots declared secession by establishing 
the ``Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus''--recognized only by Turkey. 
The U.N. Security Council again spoke forcefully, declaring the act 
legally invalid but it failed to act further.
  For the past two decades, the illegal division of Cyprus has 
continued--a stark reminder of the failure of the international 
community to enforce its will. U.N. peacekeepers monitor a Cypriot 
dividing line. Beyond it, Turkey occupies nearly 40 percent of Cyprus 
in defiance of the United Nations charter and the Helsinki final act.
  Numerous efforts have been made by U.S. and U.N. diplomats to resolve 
the crisis. Unfortunately, little tangible progress has resulted. To be 
sure, neither community on Cyprus is blameless. There have been moments 
over the past two decades where the Greek Cypriots have not been 
forthcoming in negotiations. But it cannot be disputed that most of the 
blame for the failure to resolve the Cyprus question lies with the 
Turkish Cypriots, and their patron in Ankara, the Government of Turkey.
  Over the course of the last year, for example, the U.N. Secretary-
General attempted to construct a series of confidence-building 
measures--modest but important steps designed to pave the way for 
comprehensive negotiations. After months of painstaking negotiations, 
the effort collapsed in May. The Secretary-General of the United 
Nations, Boutros Boutros Ghali, stated clearly that the Turkish 
Cypriots had caused the breakdown in the talks. With unequivocal 
language rarely employed by U.N. Diplomats, the Secretary-General 
reported that ``at present, the Security Council finds itself faced 
with an already familiar scenario: the absence of agreement due 
essentially to a lack of political will on the Turkish Cypriot side.'' 
The Secretary General continued:

       While it can be understood that the Turkish Cypriot 
     community has sometimes felt that its unhappy experience in 
     the years before 1974 justified its unforthcoming approach on 
     key aspects of the proposed * * * federation, I find it 
     difficult to understand why similar reluctance should have 
     affected the Turkish Cypriot leadership's approach to a set 
     of eminently reasonable and fair proposals that would bring 
     substantial and tangible benefits to its community without in 
     any way compromising its security or its basic political 
     positions.

  The continued stalemate of the Cyprus question cannot be attributed 
only to Turkish Cypriot obstinance. The continued occupation of the 
island, and the economic support provided by Turkey, sustains the 
illegal regime in northern Cyprus, and thus is critical to the 
continuation of the status quo. Turkish forces, numbering approximately 
30,000-35,000, occupy the island, despite United Nations Security 
Council and General Assembly resolutions demanding their withdrawal. 
Moreover, Ankara provides economic assistance that props up the Turkish 
Cypriot community. The Central Intelligence Agency reports in its 
``World Factbook'' for 1993 that ``Turkey normally underwrites a 
substantial portion of the Turkish Cypriot Economy.'' In late 1992, for 
example, Turkey provided a $100 million loan for economic development 
projects in the Turkish Cypriot area.
  Given these facts, it should be obvious that United States diplomatic 
pressure should be focused on Ankara, the recipient of significant 
American economic and military assistance. Unfortunately, every 
administrator, Democratic and Republican, has resisted such an approach 
against Turkey, a member of the NATO Alliance which sits at a 
geostrategic corner of Europe critical to American interests.
  To be sure, Turkey has played an important role in recent military 
operations in the region. During the Gulf War, critical air strikes 
were conducted from Turkish bases. Similarly, Operation Provide 
Comfort--the effort to protect the Kurdish population in northern Iraq 
from Saddam's legions--depends on the continued support of Turkey.
  But Turkey's support of these operations does not absolve Ankara of 
responsibility to uphold the rule of law on Cyprus.
  This week, the Clinton administration achieved a historic 
breakthrough in facilitating an end to the state of war between Israel 
and Jordan. The administration has also played a critical role in the 
accords between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization. A key 
element in the Middle East peace process has been high-level American 
diplomacy, including personal intervention by the President and the 
Secretary of State. Justice demands that the administration also turn 
to the Cyprus issue with equal vigor by pressing forcefully for Turkish 
withdrawal from Cyprus.
  In the coming days, the United Nations Security Council is expected 
to call on the parties in Cyprus to undertake a new effort to accept 
confidence building measures, and press forward with negotiations on an 
overall resolution of the conflict. This presents an opportunity for 
the Clinton administration to accelerate its own efforts on Cyprus. 
United States policy should include the following elements:
  First and foremost Turkey must understand that its occupation of 
Cyprus cannot continue. The United States and the other permanent 
members of the Security Council should make this clear in the strongest 
terms possible. Turkey must also use its influence with the Turkish 
Cypriot leader, Mr. Denktash, to come to terms.
  Second, the President should appoint a special envoy on Cyprus, 
similar to the high-level Ambassador we now have on Haiti. Although for 
many years the United States has had a special Cyprus coordinator, in 
practice the incumbent has been a career foreign service officer, 
lacking the prestige and profile of an appointee with direct access to 
the President and the Secretary of State.
  Third, to minimize Turkish Cypriot fears about a Turkish troop 
withdrawal, the United Nations should be prepared to expand its 
peacekeeping force on the island in the event of a settlement. 
Consideration should also be given to using forces from the permanent 
members of the U.N. Security Council.
  Fourth and finally, the two Cypriot communities must understand that 
their interests will be served by a settlement. Toward that end, the 
United States and the European Union should pledge that a reunited 
Cyprus will be afforded full integration in Western economic and 
security institutions.
  Madam President, for 20 long years the people of Cyprus have suffered 
the unnatural and illegal division of their beautiful island. The 
status quo cannot continue. I call on the administration, the United 
Nations, and my colleagues to work together to bring about a just 
resolution of the Cyprus conflict.

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