Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to commemorate the 29th anniversary of the Turkish invasion and occupation of northern Cyprus. On July 20, 1974, Turkey invade Cyprus and Turkish forces occupied more than one-third of the island nation, in clear violation of international law.
Today, thousands of Turkish soldiers, armed with the latest weapons, are stationed in the occupied area, making it one of the most militarized regions in the world.
Eighty-five thousand Turks have been brought over from Turkey to colonize the occupied area with the aim of changing the demography of the island and controlling the political situation. The Greek Cypriot community that remains enclaved within the occupied villages continues to live under conditions of oppression, harassment, and deprivation. For 29 years, divided by a 113-mile barbed wire fence that runs across the island, Greek Cypriots were prohibited from visiting the northern Turkish-occupied towns and communities where their families had lived for generations.
Since 1974, the United Nations has been trying to encourage a solution to the Cyprus problem. U.N. Secretary Kofi Annan has sponsored proximity talks between the President of Cyprus, Glafcos Clerides, and Rauf Denktash, the self-proclaimed leader of the occupied area. Unfortunately, those talks were suspended due to Denktash's abrupt departure from the negotiating table.
In January 2002, U.N.-sponsored direct negotiations between the Greek and Turkish sides finally resumed. Later that year, Secretary-General Annan presented a comprehensive new plan aimed at reunifying Cyprus. Unfortunately, unlike the Government of Cyprus, which promptly accepted the Annan Plan as a basis for negotiations, the Turkish side rejected the plan. Furthermore, the newly elected Cypriot President, Tassos Papadopoulos, accepted Annan's proposal to submit the U.N. proposal to a referendum. Denktash, however, rejected a referendum, thereby denying the people in the occupied areas a chance to determine their future.
Mr. Speaker, the United States has a national interest in fostering peace and stability in the eastern Mediterranean region. We as a nation cannot continue to pretend our NATO partner is not in clear violation of international law for its continued illegal occupation of its neighbor.
We in the United States pride ourselves for our respect for fundamental freedoms. Human rights norms are the cornerstone of U.S. foreign policy. The war on terrorism and our efforts to restore democracy in Afghanistan and Iraq are centered on those principles. As we lead international efforts to rout out terrorists and dictators that usurp fundamental principles of justice and human rights, we should remain committed to finding a just and durable settlement to the Cyprus problem. An important first step to that commitment is our strong opposition to Turkey's 29-year occupation of Cyprus.