[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 145 (1999), Part 13]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 18870]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



              THE 25TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE CYPRUS INVASION

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. ROBERT E. ANDREWS

                             of new jersey

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, July 29, 1999

  Mr. ANDREWS. Mr. Speaker, today we mark the 25th anniversary of a 
bitter day in world history, the Turkish invasion of Cyprus. Turkey's 
occupation of Cyprus now stands as the most lengthy and glaring example 
of contempt for the rule of law in the world today. The lack of 
enforcement of the scores of United Nations resolutions calling for the 
withdrawal of Turkey's illegal occupation forces remains a mark of 
unfulfilled responsibility in the global community.
  Cyprus presents an exceptional opportunity for the United States to 
facilitate a successful solution because a settlement there is 
manageable. Cyprus is small in size and population, and it has clearly 
delineated borders as an island nation. Many United Nations and United 
States Congressional resolutions have been passed over the years 
expressing the international community's and the United States' 
commitment to the removal of Turkish forces and return of Cypriot 
sovereignty. Failure to secure a Cyprus solution undermines 
international law, flouts the UN mission, contravenes stated U.S. 
foreign policy, and is in conflict with the world community's interest 
in deterring aggressor states.
  If the international community fails to create a just solution to 
this conflict, we will be implicitly accepting a defeatist premise: 
that ethnic conflicts are unsolvable and that their use as a pretext 
for international aggression is acceptable. I reject this doctrine. 
Events over the past decade in Northern Ireland, in the Middle East, 
and in the Balkans, have proven that the international community can 
and should negotiate and work for peace, to put an end to ethnic 
violence and aggression.
  My strong belief in the urgency of this cause has resulted in my work 
to eliminate all U.S. aid to Turkey and my cosponsorship of many 
resolutions urging an end to this abhorrent conflict and injustice. I 
have also asked President Clinton to become personally involved in the 
peace negotiations, which are so critical to the resolution in Cyprus. 
The Clinton Administration has an opportunity in Cyprus to extend its 
reputation for supporting the international rule of law and brokering 
peace in conflict-ridden areas.
  I will continue to urge this initiative by the Administration and to 
work hard with my colleagues here in Congress to pursue peace and 
justice--and I look forward to an end to the Turkish occupation and 
oppression of the sovereign nation of Cyprus.

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