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Cyprus PIO: News Update in English, 97-05-26Cyprus Press and Information Office: News Updates in English Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: The Republic of Cyprus Press and Information Office Server at <http://www.pio.gov.cy/>News UpdateMonday, 26/05/97CONTENTS[01] Madeleine Albright on CyprusUS Secretary of State Madeleine Albright announced on 23.5.97 that Mr Richard Beattie, who has been the US President's special emissary to Cyprus, will now be serving as her senior adviser for reorganisation issues. Mr Beattie's replacement will be announced at a later stage.Replying to a question by the press on plans for Cyprus and for any replacement of Mr Beattie, Ms Albright said: "Obviously, this is again a priority issue for us. Even though the dispute has been on the books for a long time, we have felt that this was an important year in terms of trying to move the process forward. I am considering how to deal with this issue and whom to name, and we will have some announcement for you later." Commenting on Greek-Turkish relations, the U.S. Secretary of State said: "I think that we have seen some fairly positive steps, in terms of some improvement in Greek-Turkish relations, and we hope very much that that trend continues because these are two very important NATO allies. We have great need and trust in both of them, and it is obviously much better when their relations are on a good track". [02] Foreign Minister to have contacts in world capitalsForeign Minister Ioannis Kassoulides will have a meeting on 6 June with US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright in Washington D.C.. Prior to that, Dr Kassoulides will meet his British counterpart Robin Cook, in London on June 4. Dr Kassoulides will also meet Russian Foreign Minister Yevgeni Primakov, in Moscow on June 16, on his return from Japan, where he will be on an official visit between June 11 - 14.Dr Kassoulides will hold these meetings in view of direct talks for a solution to the Cyprus problem, expected to be called by UN Secretary- General, Kofi Annan, for the beginning of July. On May 27, Kassoulides will meet European Union External Affairs Commissioner, Hans Van den Broek, in Brussels, after meeting with the Western European Alliance (WEA) General Secretary, on the previous day, within the framework of the political dialogue between Cyprus and the WEA. He is also scheduled to represent President Clerides in events marking 50 years since the Marshall plan, that will take place in the Hague on May 28. Kassoulides has already met his French counterpart, Herve de Charette, in Malta last month. Furthermore, the Chinese Deputy Foreign Minister, Ji Peiding, is expected to visit Cyprus between 19 - 22 June 1997. [03] Barsony: Enclaved face many problemsCouncil of Europe rapporteur for Cyprus, Hungarian MP Andras Barsony said on 23.5.97 that there has been some improvement in the conditions for the enclaved since last year (when his predecessor the late Lord Finsberg visited the area) but stressed that conditions are still bad.Barsony said Greek Cypriots living in the occupied north and Turkish Cypriots living in the free areas both have their problems. In an interview to the Cyprus News Agency, he repeated concerns over the lack of freedom of movement for the enclaved in the Karpass peninsula. He said that this and the education of Greek Cypriot children in the occupied area were the two biggest problems facing the enclaved. "There has been little change in the freedom of movement and I propose to address the Turkish Cypriot authorities on this issue and ask them to improve the current situation", Barsony said. He added that the current education arrangements in the Karpass are "unacceptable to us", and said he will raise this issue again when he returns to Cyprus in the autumn. [04] Greek, Turkish and Cypriot businessmen meetA tripartite meeting of Greek, Turkish and Cypriot businessmen took place in Constantinople yesterday with the aim of creating a better communication between the business people of the three countries. The forum also aimed at examining ways in which businessmen can contribute to resolving problems.The Cypriot delegation was headed by former Foreign Minister Alecos Michaelides who had suggested the realisation of the forum to a top leading Turkish businessman, during a similar meeting in Thessaloniki, two months ago. Michaelides emphasised the need to organise similar forums to help efforts towards a better climate. From the Republic of Cyprus Press and Information Office (PIO) Server at http://www.pio.gov.cy/Cyprus Press and Information Office: News Updates in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article |