Letters on Cyprus Issue 

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The May 16 World story "Official troubled over ethnic strife" repeats well-known clitches about Cyprus and, in doing so, reveals why the issue has remained unresolved for the past 38 years. The fault lies with the international community, which has demonstrated an inability or refusal to diagnose the root causes of the conflict correctly so that an appropriate remedy can be prescribed. It would, naturally, be up to the parties directly involved to fill that prescription, but the international community can help by treating them fairly and equally.

I wish to point out that Cyprus has not been divided (or "partitioned") since 1974 but since 1963, when the Greek Cypriots launched their first armed onslaught on the Turkish Cypriots, aiming at union with Greece. The only difference between then and now is that from 1963 to 1974, the island was divided into 32 pieces rather than two.

Turkey’s intervention in 1974, undertaken in accordance with its rights and obligations under the Treaty of Guarantee of 1960, was not the cause but the result of the conflict – years of agitation by the Greek Cypriots to take over the whole island. This legitimate and justified action cannot be described as an "invasion" with all the negative connotations of that term. Does it matter to anybody that the Turkish Cypriots, who were saved form extermination by Turkey’s timely action, regard this as liberation?

It woýuld be equally wrong to describe Cyprus as a “divided nation”. The island, in its modern history, has never been “one nation,” although it was a single “state” from 1960 to 1963. It has been the “common home” of two distinct peoples, Turkish Cypriots and Greek Cypriots. Geographical, political and physical separation came when the Greek Cypriots tried to turn Cyprus into a single nation – that is, single "Hellenic nation" – by purging the island of its Turkish Cypriot population.

The establishment, which has applied to become a member of the European Union and is about to reach its goal over the heads of the Turkish Cypriots, is not Cyprus as such but the Greek Cypriot administration of southern Cyprus operating under the false title of the "Republic of Cyprus." This unilateral application, which is expected to be concluded by the end of the year, has already caused immense damage to prospects for a settlement and is likely to lead to another crisis in the region if it goes ahead.

Osman ERTUĐ
Representative
Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus
Washington