[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 121 (Wednesday, July 23, 2008)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1543]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




      RECALLING THE INFAMOUS ANNIVERSARY OF THE INVASION OF CYPRUS

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                        HON. LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, July 23, 2008

  Mr. LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART of Florida. Madam Speaker, today I rise to 
recall the brutal invasion of Cyprus that occurred thirty-four years 
ago on July 20, 1974.
  The people of Cyprus continue to suffer the consequences of that 
contemptible invasion. Even now, Turkish troops continue to illegally 
occupy Cyprus. The island remains torn by a militarized fence that 
slices a 113-mile line across the island.
  I encourage both sides to fully comply with the guiding principles of 
the July 8, 2006 agreement. This agreement seeks to establish working 
groups that can operate together to reunify Cyprus into one bizonal, 
bicommunal federation. The July 8 agreement is an important achievement 
which gives us great cause to remain optimistic that a resolution is 
possible.
  While we can mark the significance of the July 8 agreement, we cannot 
celebrate until the goal of a unified Cyprus is fully and finally 
realized. We cannot celebrate until the anniversary of the July 20 
invasion is no longer a source of pain for Cypriots, and barbed wire 
fence no longer splits Cyprus into two disparate sections. The United 
States, the European Union, and the United Nations have all expressed 
their support for a solution that will reunify Cyprus. With the 
steadfast determination of the international community and the people 
of Cyprus, we will persist until the goal of a free, undivided Cyprus 
is realized at last.
  Madam Speaker, I remain hopeful that Cyprus will once again be free 
and undivided. After thirty-four years of division, illegal occupation 
and oppression, the long-suffering Cypriot people deserve to live in 
freedom and unity today.

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