[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George H. W. Bush (1991, Book I)]
[January 30, 1991]
[Pages 82-84]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



Letter to Congressional Leaders Reporting on the Cyprus Conflict
January 30, 1991 

Dear Mr. Speaker:   (Dear Mr. Chairman:)
    In accordance with Public Law 95-384 (92 Stat. 739; 22 U.S.C. 
2373(c)), I am submitting to you this bimonthly report on progress 
toward a negotiated settlement of the Cyprus question. This report 
covers the period from mid-October through December 1990.
    During this period the United Nations Secretary General, whose good 
offices mission forms the core of international efforts to resolve the 
Cyprus problem, sought to begin implementation of the ``plan of action'' 
that he had outlined in his report to the U.N. Security Council of July 
12. This plan (described in my report to you of August 30) was designed 
to prepare the ground for restarting the intercommunal talks.
    In mid-October the Secretary General asked his Special 
Representative on Cyprus, Ambassador Oscar Camilion, and Mr. Gustave 
Feissel of his New York staff, to test the degree of support for the 
U.N. plan of action in Athens and Ankara, as well as with the two 
communities in Cyprus. In Athens and Ankara Ambassador Camilion and Mr. 
Feissel received firm offers of cooperation.
    In Nicosia the picture was mixed. Both the Greek Cypriot and Turkish 
Cypriot communities pledged their cooperation with the Secretary General 
and reiterated their support for UNSC Resolution 649. Each side also 
made clear its belief that the other side was intransigent and that 
progress in carrying out the ``plan of action'' was therefore unlikely.
    To lend U.S. support to the Secretary General's efforts, I asked my 
Special Cyprus Coordinator, Ambassador Nelson Ledsky, to travel to the 
area in late October. Ambassador Ledsky met twice with the Turkish 
Foreign Minister, once with the Greek Foreign Minister, and several 
times each with President Vassiliou and Mr. Denktash. In the course of 
these meetings, Ambassador Ledsky also discussed a series of possible 
interim steps that might provide an impetus to the U.N.-sponsored 
negotiating process. He explained to each party why such a process could 
not begin with a unilateral gesture by some other party and outlined

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instead a series of balanced, reciprocal steps that could help create an 
atmosphere conducive to serious intercommunal negotiation. Although all 
concerned expressed interest in the development of such a package of 
steps, no agreement was reached on what the specific steps might be. 
Ambassador Ledsky's efforts will continue into 1991, in close 
cooperation with the U.N. Secretariat.
    I am pleased to report that on October 28 my nominee for the post of 
Ambassador to Cyprus, Robert E. Lamb, was confirmed by the United States 
Senate. Ambassador Lamb presented his credentials to President Vassiliou 
on November 30. He has met with President Vassiliou and Mr. Denktash to 
discuss the Cyprus problem and will be active in all its aspects, 
including the U.S. effort to support the good offices mission of the 
U.N. Secretary General.
    On November 7 the Secretary General sent to the Security Council a 
report on his mission of good offices in Cyprus (attached), which 
covered the period since his last report of July 12. In his November 
report the Secretary General observed that:

            ``the negative atmosphere to which I had referred in my last 
            report has persisted. Each side has objected to actions and 
            statements by the other. These actions and statements have 
            been a detraction to my effort.''

    The Secretary General also reported that the consultations 
undertaken by Ambassador Camilion and Mr. Feissel in the implementation 
of his ``plan of action'' had not been completed. He proposed to submit 
a progress report to the Security Council within 3 months, together with 
his assessment of the situation at that time. He reminded the parties of 
their commitment to UNSC Resolution 649, in which the Security Council 
called for their cooperation ``on an equal footing . . . in completing . 
. . on an urgent basis an outline of an overall agreement. . . .''
    On November 9 the Security Council--with the United States as 
President of the Council--adopted a statement supporting the efforts of 
the Secretary General. The statement also reaffirmed the Council's 
``endorsement of his plan of action to complete an outline of an overall 
agreement, including the critical substantive issues of territory, 
refugees, constitutional arrangements and security guarantees.''
    On December 7 the United Nations issued the ``Report of the 
Secretary General on the United Nations Operation in Cyprus'' 
(attached). In his report the Secretary General pointed out that the 
U.N. peacekeeping force ``is facing a chronic and everdeepening 
financial crisis.'' The report also noted a number of incidents during 
1990 that indicate that tensions on the island remain high and the 
presence of the U.N. peacekeeping force is critical to any prospects of 
a lasting settlement.
    On December 14 the Security Council approved for an additional 6 
months the renewal of the mandate of the U.N. Peacekeeping Force in 
Cyprus. On December 21 the Security Council passed unanimously a 
resolution requiring the Council to examine the problem of costs and 
financing of the peacekeeping force with a view to implementing an 
alternative means of financing--which could include, inter alia, the use 
of assessed contributions--on or before June 15, 1991. We will be 
consulting with appropriate Members of Congress on this issue in the 
near future.
    This is my final report to the Congress on Cyprus for 1990. As I 
look back over the events of 1990, I am disappointed in the lack of 
progress in the negotiating process and in the persistence of what the 
Secretary General has on several occasions called the negative 
atmosphere prevailing on the island. At the same time, I am gratified at 
the extraordinary efforts of the United Nations Secretary General and 
his staff in attempting to find a path toward reconciliation on Cyprus. 
As 1991 commences, I call upon the leaders of the two Cypriot 
communities to act in accord with UNSC Resolution 649 and to complete as 
soon as possible, hopefully by mid- 
February, the long-overdue outline for 
a settlement. I can assure the Congress 
that the United States will do all it can 
to act as a catalyst in this process and 
to help the people of Cyprus find the 
means in 1991 to end the division of their 
island by creating for themselves a

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peaceful and enduring bizonal, bicommunal federation.
    Sincerely,

                                                             George Bush

                    Note: Identical letters were sent to Thomas S. 
                        Foley, Speaker of the House of Representatives, 
                        and Claiborne Pell, chairman of the Senate 
                        Foreign Relations Committee.