S/PV.2536 Security Council

Mr. President, at the very outset I should like sincerely to thank you and, through you, the other members of the Security Council for inviting my delegation to participate in the current deliberations and for giving me the opportunity to express our views with regard to the item on the Council’s agenda. 59. It is a great honour and privilege for me to congratulate you on your assumption of the presidency of the Security Council for the month of May. It is a pleasure for me to see in the chair of this body a distinguished diplomat of the USSR, a country with which we have fraternal relations. I express my confidence that your well-known and widely recognized diplomatic skill and wisdom will contribute greatly to the success of the work of the Council. I wish also to express our sincere appreciation of the outstanding manner in which Mr. Kravets, representative of the Ukrainian SSR, conducted the business of the Council last month. 60. It is not without a sense of sorrow that my delegation joins in the present discussion. Less than a year has passed since the adoption of General Assembly resolution 37/253, and less than half a year since the Council had to meet at short notice to discuss the deteriorating situation on the island of Cyprus and to adopt resolution 541 (1983). 62. The Government of the Hungarian People’s Republic attaches great significance to the quest .for a peaceful, viable and lasting solution to the problem of Cyprus. Such a solution must be based on full respect for the independence, sovereignty, territorial integrity, unity and non-aligned status of the Republic of Cyprus, in accordance with the Charter and the relevant resolutions of the United Nations. We consider also that foreign intervention should cease and that all foreign troops and military personnel and every other military presence should be withdrawn from the island, in order to facilitate the solution of the Cyprus problem. Proceeding from these general considerations, we wish to point out that attempts to divide the country and actions to strengthen the division between the two communities are contrary to the interests of the Cypriot people as well as to the relevant resolutions of the United Nations, specifically Security Council resolution 541 (1983), which called upon all States not to recognize any Cypriot State other than the Republic of Cyprus. 63. The Government of the Hungarian People’s Republic has always been against imposing a solution on the people of Cyprus, who have suffered for so long. The Cypriot people, whose continuing tragedy has been inflicted upon it by unlawful acts by outside forces, has our deep sympathy and solidarity. We continue to believe that the forum of the intercommunal talks provides the most appropriate framework within which the substantive issues can be tackled and resolved. 64. Accordingly, my delegation wishes to express its concurrence with the view expressed in the course of the present debate by many previous speakers that the solution of the question of Cyprus must be based on the resolutions of the United Nations, as well as on the Makarios-DenktaS guidelines of 12 February 1977 [see S/12323, para. 51 and the IO-point agreement of 19 May 1979 [see S/13369, para. 511 arrived at between the President of the Republic of Cyprus and the leader of the Turkish Cypriot community. 65. The situation in Cyprus is a problem of international magnitude, the continuation of which jeopardizes and threatens the peace and security not only of the eastern Mediterranean but also of Europe, and the crisis makes its effect felt also on the outlook for and prospect of international peace and security in general. As a matter of fact, forces alien to the region have made and still are making use of this situation, for their own selfish purposes, for manipulation and interference in the eastern Mediterranean. 71. Bangladesh’s position on the Cyprus question has been firm and unequivocal, and we have consistently supported the independence, territorial integrity, sovereignty and non-aligned status of Cyprus. In light of the genesis of the present problem, Bangladesh, in the debate on the Cyprus question in the General Assembly and in the Security Council, as well as at summit-level meetings of the Movement of Non-Aligned Countries and the Commonwealth, has consistently advocated an early amicable settlement of the Cyprus question that would enable the Turkish and Greek communities in Cyprus to live in safety, dignity and honour. We are equally convinced that no solution of the problem can be lasting unless it takes into account the legitimate aspirations of both the communities in Cyprus. 67. The PRESIDENT [interpretationfrom Russian]: The next speaker is the representative of Bangladesh. I invite him to take a place at the Council table and to make his statement.

Permit me at the outset, Mr. President, to thank you and the other members of the Council for giving my delegation this opportunity to participate .in the Security Council debate on the situation in Cyprus. I also wish to congratulate you very warmly, on behalf of the -Bangladesh delegation as well as on my own behalf, on your assumption of the presidency of the Council for the current month. We are confident that under your outstanding leadership and proved diplomatic skill the Council’s deliberations will lead to fruitful and constructive results. May I also convey our deep appreciation to your predecessor, Mr. Vladimir A. Kravets of the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, for the excellent manner in which he guided the work of the Council during the month of April. 72. Given the situation, it has been our confirmed belief that the only realistic course open to the Council in the search for a solution is the continued encouragement of intercommunal talks, under the auspices of the SecretaryGeneral, based on the fundamental and legitimate rights of the two communities in accordance with the high-level agreements which they themselves reached in 1977 and 1979. These agreements, aimed at the establishment of an independent, bicommunal and non-aligned federal Republic of Cyprus with full territorial integrity, were welcomed by the overwhelming majority of the world community. It is a matter of deep regret that the intercommunal talks did not make much progress. Our profound concern was expressed by Mr. Aminur Rahman Shams-ud Doha, Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Government of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh, when, in his statement at the thirty-eighth session of the General Assembly, he stated: 69. My delegation has followed with interest the current deliberations in the Council, which has been convened to consider the latest developments, namely, the recent exchange of ambassadors between Turkey and northern Cyprus and the decision of the Turkish leadership to hold a referendum on a constitution and elections later this year. The Council has before it in document S/16519 of 1 May 1984 the report of the Secretary-General. President Kyprianou of the Republic of Cyprus, in his opening statement [253Zst meeting], and other representatives who have subsequently made statements, emphasized the need to maintain the unity and the territorial integrity of Cyprus. We listened to their statements with great attention. We paid equal attention to the statements made by Mr. Rauf Denktas and the representative of Turkey, who apprised the Council of the genesis of the Cyprus problem and the circumstances which led to the latest developments. “The lack of progress in the intercommunal talks between the Turkish Cypriot and Greek Cypriot communities has been a cause of concern to all of us. We urge both communities to engage in meaningful discussions for reaching a mutually acceptable solution of the problem that would enable them to live in honour and dignity within the framework of a federated Cyprus, where the rights of both communities will be fully protected. These talks have continued much longer than was expected, and unless there is some progress in the immediate future, the situation in Cyprus may take an irreversible turn.“’ 73. Our apprehensions proved correct when, out of a sense of sheer desperation and frustration provoked by the lack of any meaningful dialogue, the Turkish Cyp- 70. The Security Council has been seized of the Cyprus question for the last two decades, and we are all 74. The Council met after the proclamation and adopted a one-sided resolution which did not take into account the historical and cultural aspects of the process of the political evolution of Cyprus. We were convinced that the adoption of such a resolution would neither serve the cause of conciliation nor strengthen the Secretary-General’s mission of good offtces. Quite expectedly, the Turkish Cypriot leadership categorically rejected the resolution. 75. The Commonwealth Heads of State, who met at New Delhi in November last year soon after the Council debate, also considered the Cyprus problem. Our President, Lieutenant General Ershad; who led the Bangladesh delegation at the meeting, emphasized that the intercommunal talks should be continued so that a united, federated, non-aligned Cyprus could emerge. He also urged the New Delhi meeting not only to try to bring the two communities together but to establish contact with the Turkish community as well with a view to creating a climate of friendship and reconciliation between the two communities. The Bangladesh President also cautioned that mere condemnation and the adoption of a strong resolution would further aggravate the problem and mitigate against the efforts of the two communities of Cyprus themselves to find a negotiated solution to the problem. 76. In his latest report the Secretary-General has indicated the steps that he undertook in pursuance of the Security Council resolutions that renewed his mission of good offices. It contains his five-point scenario providing a necessary framework for the resumption of high-level intercommunal talks. The report also contains, in annex IV, the four-point proposal made by Mr. Denktas in his letter to the Secretary-General of 18 April 1984. The members of the Council are no doubt aware that the five-point scenario and the four-point proposal are compatible. In his statement the Turkish Cypriot leader also made it clear that his community continues to adhere to the concept of a united Cyprus within a bi-communal, bi-zonal and federal framework as provided for by the 1977 and 1979 high-level agreements and the 1980 opening statement of the Secretary- General [S/24100, annex]. Such positive signs reinforce our firm belief that it is not too late to retrieve the situation in Cyprus and that it is still possible to develop the spirit of conciliation and coexistence among the two communities. 77. It would be quite easy for the Council to pronounce its verdict on the immediate developments, but would that serve the cause of conciliation in Cyprus, which we all cherish? The tragic developments of the 78. In the light of the foregoing it is quite clear that a sound basis exists for the continuation of the Secretary- General’s good offices. Such a sound basis should not be impaired through the adoption of another one-sided resolution, which would result in the irretrievable loss of the co-operation of one of the communities-cooperation which is so essential to the success of such an effort. The Council should therefore make every effort to revitalize our common search for a peaceful settlement by providing the necessary political support for the good offices of the Secretary-General, which would in turn facilitate his task by encouraging a dialogue and negotiations. Every effort should therefore be made to adopt a resolution which is acceptable to both sides. Instead of blaming one party or the other, we should urge both communities to engage in meaningful discussions and apply themselves seriously to the task of reaching a mutually acceptable agreement. The past tragic events have shown us that the protracted deadlock in the intercommunal talks caused by the imposition of conditions by one community on the other has only exacerbated the situation and further compounded the problem. The right of the Turkish community to equal status and partnership was clearly recognized in the 1960 Constitution, and these rights cannot now be qualified or diminished. 79. In conclusion, in his report the Secretary-General has left it to the Council to assess the present situation and to decide what action needs to be taken to revitalize the search for a peaceful settlement and to provide his mission of good offices with the necessary political support. The Bangladesh delegation would like to reiterate that this is indeed a historic opportunity for the Council to set in motion a process of meaningful negotiations, a process attentive to the painful history of the past 20 years. We must all act together to channel the course of events in Cyprus in the right direction. If we fail at this moment, posterity will not forgive us for our lack of vision. The meeting rose at 12.40 p.m. NOTE ’ Ofjicial Records of the General Assembly, Thirty-eighth Session, Plenary Meetings, vol. I, 18th meeting, para. 252. HOW TO OBTAIN UNITED NATIONS PUBLICATIONS United Nations publications may be obtained from bookstores and distributors throughout the world. Consult your bookstore or write to: United Nations. Sales Section. New York or Geneva. COMMENT SE PROCURER LES PUBLICATIONS DES NATIONS UNIEs Les publications des Nations Unies sont en vente dans les librairies et les agences depositaires du monde entier. Informez-vous auprk de votre libraire ou adressez-vous g : Nations Unies. Section des ventes. New York ou Genkve. 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