Sarbanes

Sarbanes

When I was first approached with the request that I participate in this Seminar to present a paper on the Cyprus problem and the United Nations, my first question was how long that paper was expected to be. A conscientious researcher, in order to do justice to the subject, could easily fill many bulky volumes on the basis of the available material. To give just two examples, the late Professor Xydis produced two books of over one thousand pages (entitled Cyprus: Conflict and Conciliation and Cyprus: The Reluctant Republic) to cover solely the early stage of the subject and I myself remember writing a never-published more than a hundred-page confidential memorandum, for the purposes of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic, with the Cyprus recourse to the General Assembly in 1965 alone. The unquestionable fact is that the Cyprus problem, in its various aspects and phases of evolution, has been inextricably linked with the history and evolution of the United Nations over the past twenty-three year period.

What I propose to do, for the purposes of to-day's presentation, is to identify four phases corresponding, respectively to (I) the period before the independence of Cyprus; (ii) the period of 16 August 1960 to December 1962; (iii) the period of December 1963 to July 1974; and (iv) the period from July 1974 to the present date. In view of the limitation of time, I will not even attempt to deal now with the first period and I shall briefly touch upon the second, thus making it possible to concentrate more on the remaining two periods.

When Cyprus, as an independent state, was unanimously admitted to membership of the United Nations on 20 September 1960, it started with a clean slate. It was hoped that the traumatic experiences of the years immediately preceding would be forgotten and that, despite its small size and population, it would be able to play a modest but constructive role in international affairs by taking positions on issues before the Organization not mechanically and on the basis of allegiance to military alliances but on the merits of each issue in relation to the principles of the Charter. More specifically, in its geographical region and being located between three continents, it aspired to transform its role from being a bone of contention and a source of discord to serving as a bridge of peace and cooperation among its immediate neighbors. This position was authoritatively stated by H.B. Archbishop Makarios, President of the Republic, in his address to the General Assembly on 7 June 1962.

The international climate of the time was conducive to that end. It will be recalled that this was the time of the emergence from colonial rule of many new states, mainly in Africa, which upon independence joined the United Nations thus transforming its composition and voting patterns. It was the time when the concept of Non-Alignment was first elaborated upon through the Belgrade Conference of 1961 and became a sizable moral and political force in world affairs. And it was the time when, under President Kennedy and Chairman Kruschev, respectively, the United States and the Soviet Union were eagerly competing for influence among the non-aligned and newly independent states. In short, the circumstances were propitious and the delegation of Cyprus had the opportunity, through active participation on issues before the various United Nations organs, of effectively playing a role considerably exceeding that which would be expected if one only took into account the country's size and population. Whatever the issue, be it disarmament, decolonization, international law matters or, more specifically, questions such as that of Algeria, Palestine, South Tyrol, Korea, Cuba or the India-China situation, the Cyprus delegation was consulted, its assistance was sought and its positions, which were dictated by the basic considerations indicated earlier as a small, non-aligned, developing state, newly independent and having just emerged from colonial rule after a liberation struggle, were carefully listened to and given considerable weight. Put differently, even though somewhat immodestly, Cyprus was a factor to be reckoned with in United Nations affairs.

It should be remembered that the period of 1960 to the end of 1963, was the time, in fact the only time, when Cyprus was not laboring under a problem of its own.

During this formative period, Cyprus made the United Nations and the principles of the Charter central to its foreign policy and this had a significant and direct effect upon subsequent developments. In December 1963 when, following serious international difficulties the Republic of Cyprus was confronted by serious threats and acts of aggression by Turkey, it was natural that it should turn