The Cyprus Conflict Message to the Congress Reporting on Progress Made Toward a Negotiated Settlement.

To the Congress of the United States:

As required by Public Law 94-104, this report describes progress which has been achieved during the last sixty days toward settlement of the Cyprus problem and the efforts the Administration has made to contribute to its resolution.

In my first report, dated February 11, I emphasized the high priority we place on this effort and reaffirmed our intention to work closely with the Congress in deciding on our future course. I promised that my Special Representative, Mr. Clark Clifford, would consult with you both before and after his trip to the area. He has done so. Before his departure, Mr. Clifford discussed the Cyprus question, and other pertinent matters, with a number of interested Senators and Congressmen. Leaving Washington February 15, he spent some two weeks visiting the eastern Mediterranean area to confer with leaders in Ankara, Athens and Nicosia. He also met with United Nations Secretary General Kurt Waldheim, under whose leadership the Cyprus intercommunal negotiations were subsequently reconvened. Returning from this series of intensive conversations, Mr. Clifford stopped in London to share his impressions with leaders of the British Government which, as current incumbent of the European Community Presidency as well as former administrator of Cyprus, maintains a special interest in finding a just and speedy Cyprus solution.

Upon his return, Mr. Clifford reported to me that the leaders of Greece, Turkey and Cyprus correctly saw his mission as a signal of the deep interest this Administration takes in the problems of the eastern Mediterranean. He came away convinced of their clear understanding that the United States is firmly committed to the search for 'a fair and lasting Cyprus settlement as well as to the improvement of relations with our two important and valued NATO allies, Greece and Turkey, and to the creation of a more stable atmosphere in the eastern Mediterranean.

The tasks I gave Mr. Clifford were to make a first-hand assessment of current problems and attitudes in the three countries so that we might better judge what contribution the United States might make toward encouraging progress in the long-festering Cyprus dispute; to identify ways in which the United States could improve its bilateral relationships with Greece and Turkey; and to gain a better insight into the sources of the tensions that exist between these two NATO allies.

In his visits to Ankara and Athens, Mr. Clifford held detailed discussions on a range of bilateral issues, as well as the subject of Cyprus. These talks were useful in creating a better understanding of the problems which have complicated our relations with Greece and Turkey. I was pleased to hear from Mr. Clifford that the leaders in Ankara and Athens support a serious attempt to negotiate a fair settlement of the Cyprus problem in 1977.

On Cyprus, Mr. Clifford had lengthy meetings with Archbishop Makarios and with the Turkish Cypriot leader, Mr. Rauf Denktash. These talks were frank and forthright. Both leaders recognized that what would be needed to move the Vienna talks forward were specific discussions of the two central issues of the Cyprus problem: future territorial arrangements and the division of responsibility between the central and regional governments. Mr. Clifford found a new willingness to face the difficult decisions which both sides must now make if a settlement is to be reached.

One indication of that willingness is the negotiations between the Turkish and Greek Cypriot representatives which took place in Vienna from March 31 through April 7. These meetings--the first such intercommunal negotiations in more than a year--were chaired for the first several days by U.N. Secretary General Waldheim and following his scheduled departure on April 4, the concluding sessions were held under the chairmanship of the Secretary General's Special Representative for Cyprus, Ambassador Perez de Cuellar.

We had not expected any dramatic breakthroughs at these meetings; and none occurred. The two sides are still far apart in their views. But the meetings did move forward the process of probing and clarification of each side's position by the other. Most important, in my view, is the fact that for the first time since 1974 concrete, detailed proposals were put forward by each side covering the two central issues. And finally the momentum achieved in these meetings has been preserved by the agreement of both sides to meet again in Nicosia about the middle of May to prepare for another round in Vienna and thus continue the process toward a peaceful Cyprus solution.

In my first report I promised that the United States will do all that it can to help achieve a negotiated settlement for Cyprus. I believe that the United States should continue to take a part in supporting the negotiating process revitalized by Secretary General Waldheim last month in Vienna. I believe that it is essential that we continue to work with the parties to encourage and insure a sustained and serious negotiating process and equally important that we work with our Greek and Turkish allies to strengthen the ties of friendship and cooperation between our countries. Working in close liaison with the Congress, we will devote whatever efforts may be required to .bring about a truly just and lasting peace in the eastern Mediterranean.

JIMMY CARTER

The White House,

April 15, 1977.