[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 48 (Tuesday, March 25, 2003)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E572-E573]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           DISMAY OVER THE END OF U.N. NEGOTIATIONS IN CYPRUS

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. JAMES R. LANGEVIN

                            of rhode island

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, March 25, 2003

  Mr. LANGEVIN. Mr. Speaker, as a member of the Hellenic Caucus, I rise 
to register my dismay that negotiations between the President of 
Cyprus, Tassos Papadopoulos, and Turkish Cypriot leader Rauf Denktash 
on a United Nations settlement plan to reunite Cyprus ended two weeks 
ago without a final outcome.
  Mr. Denktash has put most of the blame on his own shoulders for this 
lost opportunity. By not allowing the Turkish Cypriots to vote on the 
U.S. settlement plan by a referendum, Mr. Denktash has made the 
decision for the Turkish Cypriots that they will not live under the 
European Union's laws or reap its economic benefits. Mr. Denktash 
should not just look at this as a personal matter, or even as a dispute 
between Turkey and Greece, but should rather take into consideration 
what is the right choicer for the people of Cyprus.
  As may other members have expressed, I do not want the recent 
reunification talks, the fourth attempt since the Turkish invasion of 
Northern Cyprus in 1974, to end in an impasse. The U.S. settlement 
cleared a path for all of Cyprus to unite once again, to share in the 
European Union's prosperity, and to end military zones. Now with just 
the Republic of Cyprus poised and ready for membership into the EU in 
2004, a deeper divide between the two sides may grow without a push for 
future negotiations.
  The United States must continue its role in supporting negotiations 
so that there is still potential for all of Cyprus to join the EU. 
Consequently, I recently sent a letter to President Bush asking that we 
continue to encourage reunification negotiations in Cyprus. Although

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frustration levels at this point are high, the United States should 
still play a positive and supportive role that will lead to a final 
Cyprus settlement. I urge Congress to continue to support Cyprus' 
membership to the European Union and the United Nation's settlement 
plan.

                          ____________________