The Governments Reply to the Murders

22 August 1996

Argyros George Argyrou

Northampton

Dear Mr Argyrou,

Thank you for your letters of 12 & 16 August to the Prime Minister about the recent outbreak of violence in Cyprus earlier this month which tragically left two young men dead and a number of others injured.

We are deeply concerned at the clashes in the UN Buffer Zone. We deplore the acts of violence and have unreservedly condemned the killing of these young men. We have made it clear both in Ankara and to Mr Denktash that the reaction of the Turkish Cypriot authorities to the unauthorised presence of demonstrators in the UN Buffer Zone was out of all proportion to the provocation. We have urged that those responsible for the killings should be brought to justice. No-one should be left in any doubt about how seriously we view the recent violence. The Cypriot Government are also aware of our concerns about the failure to prevent demonstrators from breaching the integrity of the buffer zone as stipulated in UN Security Council Resolutions.

These horrific events demonstrate the fragility of the status quo and that we must continue to work for a just and lasting settlement. This will only come about through direct negotiations between the leaders of both communities. We, and others in the international community, are working actively to achieve this.

Yours Sincerely

G. Tebble.

Gary Tebble

Southern European Department