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Friday, 22 November 2024
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Cyprus PIO: News Update in English, 01-06-01Cyprus Press and Information Office: News Updates in English Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: The Republic of Cyprus Press and Information Office Server at <http://www.pio.gov.cy/>Friday, 1 June 2001CONTENTS[01] Renewal of UNFICYP does not need Turkish consent, says governmentThe government says it is not prepared to accept any attempt by the UN to seek the consent of the Turkish Cypriot side for the renewal of the six- monthly mandate of the UN peace-keeping force in Cyprus, as this would constitute a change in the policy followed so far.Asked to comment on a letter sent by Turkish Cypriot leader Mr Denktash to the United Nations Secretary-General, Kofi Anan, requesting that a reference indicating that the occupying regime will also have to approve UNFICYP's presence on the island be included in Mr Anan's forthcoming report on the renewal of the UNFICYP mandate, Government Spokesman Michalis Papapetrou said yesterday that the Turkish side is continuously trying to create a situation similar to that of the addendum and for this purpose letters are being sent and other political manoeuvres are undertaken by the Turkish diplomacy. "The Cyprus government is taking the necessary measures in order to promote our political position on the matter", he emphasised. In a letter to the UN Secretary-General, Cyprus' Permanent Representative at the UN, Mr Sotos Zakheos, points out that in accordance with Security Council resolution 186 (1964) the only required and relevant consent for the extension of the mandate of UNFICYP is that of the Government of the Republic of Cyprus. It is obvious that the UN cannot sign an agreement with a secessionist entity which has been condemned by the Security Council as "legally invalid", and which the European Court of Human Rights has described as "a subordinate local administration of Turkey", he adds. Mr Zakheos stresses that the Cyprus problem is a question of foreign invasion and occupation of one third of the territory of the Republic of Cyprus by a powerful neighbour, the Republic of Turkey, which has effective control over the occupied territory, in view of the massive presence of its military forces, finances its budget and on who the subordinate local administration depends entirely. [02] Congressmen urge US Secretary of State to make position on Cyprus clearA letter signed by 45 US Congressmen was sent on 29 May to the US Secretary of State Colin Powell, calling on the US Administration to clearly state that it supports Cyprus' entry into the European Union with or without a prior solution to the tragic division of the island.Initiators of the letter were Congressmen Lincoln Diaz-Balart and Robert Menendez, who express their support for the US to take an active role in efforts to reunite Cyprus and their belief that the island's entry into the EU would contribute to a solution of the Cyprus problem, stability in the region, as well as serve US and NATO's interests in the region. From the Republic of Cyprus Press and Information Office (PIO) Server at http://www.pio.gov.cy/Cyprus Press and Information Office: News Updates in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article |
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