No U.N. plan for Cyprus

Press, Volume CXV, Issue 33777, 25 February 1975, Page 17

No U.N. plan for Cyprus

(N.Z.P.A.-Reuter—Copyright) NEW YORK, February 24. The Security Council, after two days of debating Cyprus and a weekend of private talks, still had no clear plan for breaking the impasse between the island’s two communities, diplomatic sources said.

The debate on finding a formula for reviving stalled negotiations between Greek and Turkish Cypriots will resume today, but none of the big five permanent members are listed to speak. Two of thd non-permanent members, Sweden and Guyana, may address the Council today, according to informed sources.

Another likely speaker is Mr Vedat Celik. representing the Turkish Cypriot community. He has previously taken part in the debate.

The inter-communal talks, between the Greek Cypriot leader, Mr Glafkos Clerides, Speaker of the Cyprus House of Representatives, and his Turkish Cypriot counterpart, Mr Rauf Denktash, were broken off after the Turkish Cypriots declared a separate state on February 13, as part of a proposed federation. The Security Council met last Thursday and Friday at the request of the Cyprus Government, headed bv Archbishop Makarios, which sent Mr Clerides to New York to condemn the Turkish Cypriot action.

Most council members agree that a resumption of the inter-communal talks, m some new format, is the best way to make progress and

head-off renewed violence on the island, the northern part of which has been occupied since last July by the Turkish Army. Mr Clerides insists that any resumed negotiations take place in a wider forum than his previous meetings with Mr Denktash.

“We would not opnose any proposal wider than the inter, communal talks,” he told N.Z.P.A.-Reuter last night.

The Turkish Cypriots, on [the other hand, have expressed readiness to return immediately to the conference table and have accused the Cyprus Government and the Greek Cypriot community of seeking to “internationalise” the problem. The Soviet Union, the only permanent Security Council member to have spoken so far in the debate, revived its plan for a large U.N.sponsored conference, including all 15 Council members and an unspecified number of non-aligned States.

Another proposal, believed [more acceptable to the [Turkish Cypriots and Turkev, [as well as the Western [Powers, would give the Secretary-General (Dr Kurt Waldheim) a wider mediating role and ask him to report back to the Council by a certain time. j