Cyprus, 2011

I congratulate you,

Sir, on your election as President of the General

Assembly at its sixty-sixth session. I express the

support of the Cypriot delegation, and I wish you every

success in fulfilling your duties.

Over the past six months we have witnessed

historic changes in the wider region of the Middle East

and North Africa, a region which is very close to

Cyprus. A popular movement has developed in this

region with the aim of implementing fundamental

democratic reforms. The reforms are a sovereign affair

for the peoples. We hope that they are achieved

peacefully, without bloodshed and for the benefit of the

peoples themselves, through political dialogue and

with the support of the international community. We,

the international community, should offer this support

while respecting the sovereignty and the territorial

integrity of the Member States of the United Nations.

The Republic of Cyprus has experienced

violence, and we still suffer from its consequences.

Cyprus is still suffering the effects of the illegal

Turkish invasion of 1974 and the ongoing occupation.

The Cyprus problem is first and foremost a problem of

invasion and occupation and the violation of

international law and of the human rights of Cypriot

citizens.

Since the Turkish invasion in 1974, our goal has

been a peaceful resolution of the problem through

negotiations between the Greek Cypriot and Turkish

Cypriot communities under the auspices of the

Secretary-General and on the basis of Security Council

and General Assembly resolutions on Cyprus.

Since September 2008, we have undertaken a

renewed effort to solve the Cyprus problem, under the

auspices of the United Nations, through direct

negotiations between the leaders of the two

communities, upon our initiative. This effort is focused

on the evolution of the unitary State into a federal one,

with two federated units with political equality as

defined in relevant Security Council resolutions — one

State, with a single sovereignty, a single citizenship

and a single international personality. This basis was

reaffirmed by the leaders of the two communities in

2008, when they agreed on the resumption of

negotiations.

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At the same time, the negotiating process, under

the auspices of the United Nations, was agreed. The

negotiations are Cypriot-led and Cypriot-owned, as

was agreed with the Secretary-General, excluding any

form of arbitration or artificial time frames. This was

agreed, bearing in mind recent negative experiences

that resulted from unsuccessful attempts to solve the

problem.

We aim to achieve a mutually agreed solution,

terminating the occupation and the illegal colonization

by Turkey with settlers in the occupied part of Cyprus.

We seek a solution that reunifies the country and its

people and creates conditions of lasting peace and

security on the island.

An important aspect of the Cyprus problem, of a

humanitarian nature, is the issue of missing persons.

This issue must be settled regardless of the

developments in the negotiations. Turkey must fulfil its

obligations, which stem from the judgments of the

European Court of Human Rights, to allow

exhumations in military areas and open the archives of

its army and of other services, in order to determine the

fate of the missing persons.

During the first two years of direct negotiations

between the leaders of the two communities,

convergences have been reached on various aspects of

the Cyprus problem. I regret to note that, lately in

particular, the Turkish Cypriot side is backtracking,

even from convergences that had been found. This

change in the stance of the Turkish Cypriot leadership

draws on the recent negative and provocative policy of

Turkey in the region.

In recent years, the Republic of Cyprus has

started a process for the exploration and potential

extraction of hydrocarbons within its exclusive

economic zone. This was preceded by agreements to

delimit the exclusive economic zone with neighbouring

countries, always within the framework of international

law, in particular the United Nations Convention on the

Law of the Sea, which the Republic of Cyprus has

ratified. We anticipate that this effort will contribute to

the discovery of new energy resources, particularly for

Europe, and of course for the shared benefit of our

people, Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots alike.

We believe that the possible discovery and

extraction of hydrocarbons will constitute yet another

strong motive for Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots

to expedite a just, functional and viable solution to the

Cyprus problem, so that both communities can enjoy

the natural wealth of our country in conditions of

peace, security and prosperity. I wish to reassure our

Turkish Cypriot compatriots that, regardless of the

circumstances, they would benefit from the possible

discovery and extraction of hydrocarbons.

Unfortunately, the effort of the Republic of

Cyprus to exercise its sovereign right to exploit its

marine wealth is met by threats by Turkey against

Cyprus. Turkish naval manoeuvres in the region of

Cyprus’s exclusive economic zone, where explorations

are being carried out, are provocative and constitute a

real danger of further complications in the region. At

the same time, Turkey has continued its illegal actions

by concluding an agreement with the illegal regime in

the occupied area of the Republic of Cyprus in order to

pursue exploration within the exclusive economic zone

of the Republic of Cyprus.

From this rostrum, I wish to condemn that illegal

act, which constitutes a provocation not only for the

Republic of Cyprus but for the entire international

community. Instead of adopting a constructive stance

in the negotiations for a speedy solution to the Cyprus

problem, Turkey and the Turkish Cypriot leadership are

trying to create tension and new, illegal faits

accomplis. Ankara’s latest threats directed at a

European Union (EU) member State come at a time

when Turkey is seeking to open new chapters in its EU

accession negotiations.

We wish to express our gratitude to the

permanent and non-permanent members of the Security

Council, and to the European Union, for the clear

position they have taken in defending the sovereign

rights of the Republic of Cyprus. We call on the

Security Council, the Secretariat and the United

Nations in general to impress upon the Turkish

leadership that any threat to or violation of the

sovereignty of the Republic of Cyprus, or any

continuing violation of international and European law,

will not be tolerated.

We are fully committed to continuing to work

towards a solution of the Cyprus problem, within the

agreed framework and on the basis of the agreed

process, as soon as possible. Considering that it is first

and foremost the Cypriot people who are suffering

from the continuing occupation, it is only natural for us

to demonstrate goodwill and exert all our efforts to

reach a just, viable and functional solution to the

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Cyprus problem and for the reunification of the State

and our people.

We will continue to work to strengthen

cooperation and trust between Greek and Turkish

Cypriots. A rapprochement of the two communities is

integral to our policy. We are continuing with our

initiatives aimed at creating the conditions conducive

to a solution. We recall our proposal for the restitution

of Famagusta — a European city, uninhabited since

1974 as a result of the Turkish occupation — to its

lawful inhabitants, under United Nations

administration. Our proposal also includes the use of

the city’s port by Turkish Cypriots under EU

supervision.

The implementation of this proposal will

significantly boost negotiations and increase trust

between the two communities; that will also lead to the

unfreezing of negotiations chapters in Turkey’s EU

accession process. We recall that the handover of the

uninhabited area of Famagusta to United Nations

administration, and the return of its lawful inhabitants,

is called for in Security Council resolution 550 (1984),

which Turkey refuses to implement.

We would like to express our gratitude to the

United Nations, under whose auspices the talks

between the leaders of the two communities are being

carried out. We thank the Security Council and the

Secretary-General himself for his good offices.

It is to the Secretary-General’s credit that during

his recent meetings with the leaders of the two

communities he persistently sought reaffirmation of the

basis for the negotiations from both sides. He has

referred specifically to Security Council resolution

1251 (1999), which provides that the solution to the

Cyprus problem shall be a bi-zonal, bi-communal

federation with political equality, as defined in the

Security Council resolutions: a State with a single

sovereignty, a single citizenship and a single

international personality, excluding any form of union,

in whole or in part, with any other country as well as

any form of partition or secession. That is the basis that

the United Nations continues to support.

We are also grateful that the Secretary-General

has asked for the reaffirmation of the convergences that

were previously agreed on in the framework of the

talks. As I have mentioned, the Turkish Cypriot leader

has unfortunately retreated from previous agreements

of fundamental importance. We believe that the only

way to move forward and reach a solution as soon as

possible is by upholding the commitments that both

sides have undertaken in the presence of the Secretary-

General. Negotiations should be carried out on a clear

basis and without backtracking.

The long-standing dispute in the Middle East is

now characterized by frozen negotiations. It is vitally

important that the peace process be resumed on the

basis of the principles established by the international

community in its resolutions. Cyprus supports the

resumption of negotiations and calls on both sides to

engage with honesty and goodwill, without creating

new faits accomplis.

Israelis and Palestinians alike deserve a peaceful,

stable and secure future within a framework of two

independent States. We maintain our principled

position for a free and independent Palestinian State,

next to the State of Israel, within the 1967 borders.

It has been 10 years since the attacks on the

World Trade Center here in New York. Cyprus

continues to support the collective efforts of the

international community, based on international law, to

eliminate international terrorism. We support the

implementation of the necessary measures, including

the adoption of a comprehensive convention on

international terrorism.

Most countries in the world are still in the grip of

the global financial crisis. This crisis proves that a new

model of growth must prevail, focused on reducing

social inequalities, eradicating poverty and

safeguarding the rights of workers and all other people.

Special emphasis must be given to the fairer

distribution of social goods, such as health and

education, and to ending the market’s impunity and

lack of regulation. Emphasis must also be given to

dealing with social repercussions, such as

unemployment, delinquency, crime and social

marginalization — problems that cause social tensions

and conflicts in a number of countries in Europe and

the world.

There can be no doubt that building prosperity

and global stability on solid foundations cannot be

accomplished without protecting the environment and

our planet and promoting the sustainable use of its

resources.

In conclusion, I wish to stress that there is no way

to deal with the challenges facing humankind today

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other than collective action. We will succeed only if we

realize that our future must be characterized by mutual

respect, the fairer distribution and redistribution of

global wealth, social progress and equality, and the

prevalence of international law and human rights.