E.U. Belienes Membership Will Benefit All Cypriots

The European Council Summit in Luxembourg, to be held from December 12-13, will set the precise date for the commencement of accession negotiations of Cyprus to the E.U.

The Luxembourg summit will consider the recommendations of the European Commission's “Agenda 2000" report, which calls for the E.U. to begin accession talks with Cyprus in 1998.

E.U. External Affairs Commissioner Hans Van den Broek discussed “how to further accelerate the preparations for membership.” in meetings with President Clerides and other officials on December 1-2.

Rejecting Turkey’s argument that E.U. accession should await a political settlement, the E.U. Commissioner, who also met with Turkish Cypriot leader Rauf Denktash, stressed on December 2 that the accession process can encourage “both communities to discuss with each other what their bargaining position will be vis-à-vis the E.U.” and this will be “conducive to progress in the political talks.”

He said it was important to “try to get out of this vicious circle of first a political solution and then accession talks. Let’s try to have this complicated process of the accession talks help at least produce more understanding in the political talks.”

The Cyprus government also believes that the accession process can serve as a catalyst to a comprehensive settlement, and Cyprus Foreign Minister Ioannis Kasoulides said on December 2 that the government will continue to demonstrate the goodwill needed to achieve progress in U.N. talks, even prior to E.U. accession.

“We must do whatever is in our power to achieve, by the time of accession, a negotiated solution to the Cyprus problem, even if the achievement of such a solution cannot be considered as a precondition for accession,” he said.

Government Welcomes Turkish Cypriot Participation
In his meetings on Cyprus the E.U. Commissioner repeatedly emphasized that E.U. membership will benefit Greek and Turkish Cypriots and expressed the hope that a way can be found to include Turkish Cypriots in the Cyprus government negotiating team. “When we talk about Cyprus becoming a member of the E.U., then the benefits, the rights, and the obligations should apply to both communities,” Van den Broek said.

The Cyprus government welcomes Turkish Cypriot participation in the Republic's delegation to the E.U. negotiations, and Foreign Minister Kasoulides reaffirmed on December 2 that the only requirement is that the Turkish Cypriots “should accept that it is the Cyprus Republic holding the negotiations with the participation of Turkish Cypriots, and accept the principle of the island’s accession to the E.U.”

Once these principles are accepted, he added, the government will explore the ways the Turkish Cypriot community can participate in the accession process.

Despite the many benefits which would accrue to the Turkish Cypriot community as Cyprus becomes a member of the Union, the Turkish side continues to fiercely oppose Cyprus’ efforts to join the European Union. Turkey has threatened to annex the occupied areas when Cyprus joins the European Union and Turkish Cypriot leader Denktash has said that with the beginning of accession negotiations the Turkish side will refuse to further participate in U.N. talks.

In light of these actions, while repeatedly emphasizing the importance of improved E.U.-Turkish relations, European leaders and E.U. officials have made it clear to Ankara that Turkey’s prospects for E.U. membership are contingent on Turkey altering its policies in several areas, including: improving its human rights record, improving relations with Greece, and contributing to efforts to achieve a Cyprus settlement.

Van den Broek expressed the hope that Ankara would give “a number of positive signals” that it intends to change its policies in these areas. “We don’t make any secret that at the present point in time there are certain situations in Turkey that would make it very difficult to accept Turkey today as a full member of the E.U.,” he concluded.

Simitis: Turkey’s Threats to Annex Occupied Cyprus Must End
In discussions with British Prime Minister Tony Blair and French President Jacques Chirac, Greek Prime Minister Costas Simitis stressed that Greece cannot accept Turkey’s participation in a European Conference, to be composed of countries who have applied for E.U. members, until Turkey begins to demonstrate that its behavior is consonant with European principles.

It was inconceivable for a third country such as Turkey to say whether it will accept E.U. negotiations with a candidate country such as Cyprus. He also emphasized that Turkey must clearly accept the U.N. resolutions on Cyprus, since its official statements threatening partition or annexation are contrary to those resolutions.
 

Cyprus Business Leaders to Cooperate

Holbrooke Calls Brussels Meeting an “Unqualified Success”

The Cyprus government welcomed the results of a conference in Brussels on November 13-14 which promoted cooperation between Greek and Turkish Cypriot business leaders, the government spokesman said on November 17.

Many of the problems created by Turkey’s forced division of Cyprus “can be overcome through sincere cooperation,” he said, adding that bicommunal meetings such as the one in Brussels help create the climate for the economic cooperation needed in the peaceful Cyprus of the future.

The conference, which included business leaders from Greece and Turkey as well as from both communities in Cyprus, was an “unqualified success,” U.S. Special Presidential Envoy on Cyprus Richard Holbrooke said on November 15. Organized by Columbia University in New York and the Peace Research Institute in Oslo, Holbrooke said the discussion during the conference “was intense, engaged, and at times, even electrifying.”

The participants expressed great interest in implementing the numerous suggestions for intercommunal business cooperation and at the conclusion of the conference one of its organizers, former Norwegian Deputy Foreign Minister Jan Egeland, announced four proposals which are being implemented immediately: improved phone communication between the free and occupied areas of Cyprus, formation of a business forum, creation of a common courier service, and formation of a water study group. The conferees also strongly supported more people-to-people exchanges.

Business leaders can contribute to the lowering of tensions on Cyprus, Holbrooke said in his address to the conference on November 14, and increase communication between the two communities.

White House Spokesman Mike McCurry added on November 15 that economic cooperation such as was discussed at the conference will be “an element of the eventual resolution of a conflict that we have devoted enormous diplomatic effort on, in the course of the past year.”
 

Illegal Settlers Major Obstacle To Cyprus Settlement

“The solution of the Cyprus problem should include two necessary elements, the removal of the occupation troops and the settlers,” Cyprus President Glafcos Clerides stressed on November 30.

Following the release of new statistics which underscore the massive nature of Turkey’s illegal colonization, Clerides and other government officials reaffirmed that any settlement must include the withdrawal of those foreigners who have illegally settled in the occupied areas since Turkey’s 1974 invasion.

“The solution of the Cyprus problem is not feasible without the return of the settlers” to Turkey, Cyprus Foreign Minister Ioannis Kasoulides said on November 28, adding that “once this principle is accepted, only then shall we be ready to discuss humanitarian cases related to settlers.”

Turkey’s colonization of the occupied areas is in gross violation of international law, particularly the 1949 Geneva Convention Relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War, the U.N. Security Council resolutions on Cyprus, and the 1960 treaties establishing the Republic of Cyprus.

Colonists Exceed Turkish Cypriots
The international community has repeatedly called for the withdrawal of the illegal settlers and an end to attempts to change the demography of Cyprus. Still, the results of a census conducted by the occupation “authorities” and published by the Turkish Cypriot press on November 27 indicated that the situation in the occupied areas was even more alarming than previously thought, since it is now clear that the number of illegal settlers even exceeds the number of Turkish Cypriots.

In 1974 when Turkey invaded and occupied 37% of Cyprus, there were approximately 120,000 Turkish Cypriots, constituting 18% of the island’s population. During the invasion more than 180,000 Greek Cypriots were forced to flee from the areas now under military occupation by Turkey; subsequently most members of the Turkish Cypriot community moved to the occupied areas.

Since the invasion an estimated 40,000 Turkish Cypriots emigrated to other countries, as a consequence of the conditions in the occupied areas resulting from the presence of the foreign troops and settlers. As a result, only between 80,000-90,000 Turkish Cypriots remain in the occupied areas.

The recent census by the occupation “authorities” states that there are 200,000 people living in Turkish-occupied Cyprus. This indicates that in addition to Ankara’s 35,000 occupation troops, “the settlers brought into Cyprus from Turkey are at least 100,000,” Cyprus government spokesman Manolis Christofides said on November 28. Calling the illegal colonization perhaps the greatest danger for Cyprus' present and future, he said it was “an international crime which must be tackled by all of us on a global level.”
 

“U.D.I.” Condemned amid Calls for Reunification of Cyprus

On November 15, thousands of Cypriots throughout the free areas of the Republic protested the 14th anniversary of the “unilateral declaration of independence” (U.D.I.) of the Turkish-occupied area and demanded an end to Turkey's military occupation. The Cypriot people place great hope in international efforts to achieve a Cyprus breakthrough next year, President Clerides said in a message denouncing the secessionist action, and he called on the international community to press Turkey until it allows a lasting Cyprus settlement to be achieved.

After the declaration of U.D.I., the U.N. Security Council adopted  resolution 541 on November 18, 1983, declaring any secessionist attempts “legally invalid” and calling on “all states to respect the sovereignty, independence, territorial integrity, and non-alignment of the Republic of Cyprus [and] not to recognize any Cypriot state other than the Republic of Cyprus." The Council further condemned the secessionist action in resolution 550.

Turkey’s Military Buildup Protested
On November 20 the Cyprus government strongly protested to the U.N. over Turkey’s continuing military buildup in occupied Cyprus. Turkey brought additional weaponry to occupied Cyprus under the pretext of a military exercise, illegally held earlier in November. “These actions constitute a violation of repeated General Assembly and Security Council resolutions and are in complete disregard of international law and the U.N. Charter,” the protest to the Secretary-General said.

Turkey’s 35,000 heavily-armed troops are equipped with advanced military hardware, including more than 350 tanks.
 

EU Membership to Offer Economic, Political, and Social Benefits

In his address in Brussels on November 14 to the conference on inter-communal business cooperation on Cyprus, E.U. Commissioner for External Affairs Hans Van den Broek outlined how Cyprus’ accession to the European Union will benefit all Cypriots socially, politically, and economically.

The conference was being held at a critical time, he said, shortly before the E.U. summit will determine Union enlargement, and while preparations are being made to resume direct U.N. talks. “It is my profound conviction that these two processes are mutually reinforcing,” he said.

Discussing the security fears of both communities, Van den Broek stressed that accession can allay these concerns, since “membership of a federal Cyprus should in itself bring increased security and prosperity to the island’s two communities. This is an important message which should reassure both communities in Cyprus, whose peace of mind depends on adequate security arrangements.”

“The European Union is founded on the concept of freedom,” Van den Broek said, and “in the European single market, this principle is reflected in the free circulation of goods, services, capital and people. The elimination of border restrictions in the European Union has brought immense benefits to businesses and given a real sense of common citizenship to the people of our member-states.” The “four freedoms” of a single European market would apply to Cyprus as a member-state.

Turning to the political dimension, he said that the accession agreement between the E.U. and Cyprus will protect the political rights of all Cypriots. “Any Cypriot citizen should be assured that political rights embodied in a political settlement would not only be respected but also reinforced by the accession treaty. This assurance is all the greater under the terms of the Amsterdam Treaty which specifically guarantees the protection of democracy and human rights.”

He also said that the rights of both Cypriot communities would benefit from participation in E.U. institutions, including the European Parliament, the Court of Justice, and the Council of Ministers.
 

Brazil to Continue Support for Cyprus

In accepting the credential of Cyprus Ambassador Andros Nicolaides as the new non-resident ambassador to Brazil, Brazilian President Fernando Henrique Cardoso on November 27 welcomed the warm relations existing between the two countries and said Brazil will continue to support Cyprus’ efforts to achieve a lasting settlement. Cyprus’ accession to the E.U., he continued, will help achieve such a settlement.

Nicolaides thanked Cardoso for Brazil’s continued support of U.N. efforts on Cyprus, and he briefed the Brazilian President on the latest developments on Cyprus, including the efforts of the U.S. and E.U. in support of U.N. efforts.

In Brazilia Nicolaides also reviewed the status of Cyprus-Brazilian relations with foreign ministry officials and he briefed members of the Brazilian press on latest Cyprus developments.
 
 

In Brief . . .
More than 1,000 Greek Cypriots celebrated mass at the Apostolos Andreas monastery in occupied Cyprus on November 30. Following 23 years of neglect by Turkish occupation authorities, the 19^th century monastery is in a serious state of disrepair, though the extent was unknown until earlier this year when occupation authorities finally allowed the first visit by Greek Cypriots since the 1974 invasion. The Cyprus government allows Turkish Cypriots living in the occupied areas to cross the U.N.- demarcation line and visit Turkish Cypriots living in the free areas of the Republic, and pray at the Hala Sultan Tekke mosque in Larnaca. Occupation authorities however, repeatedly seek to prevent contact between Greek and Turkish Cypriots.

The government recently released its Demographic Report for 1996, which confirmed that Cypriots are marrying later, living longer, and having fewer children. The population in the free areas exceeds 651,800, an increase of 1% over 1995, while the crude birth rate dropped to 14.9 per thousand last year, compared to 15.4 per thousand a year earlier. Life expectancy of those living in the free areas compares favorably with other developed countries–75.3 years for males and 79.8 years for females.

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