UN tackles arms, mines on Cyprus
NICOSIA (AFP) – The United Nations began destroying a Greek-Cypriot arms cache yesterday as part of reconciliation efforts with the Turkish Cypriots on the divided island, officials said. The Greek Cypriots had proposed that the cache of 4,500 Czech-made pistols and automatic rifles be destroyed ahead of the direct talks launched on January 16 between Greek-Cypriot President Glafcos Clerides and Turkish-Cypriot leader Rauf Denktash. «The Cyprus government has agreed that UNFICYP will dispose of a stockpile of some 4,500 small arms, which have been in UN safekeeping since 1972,» said a UN statement yesterday. «Destruction of the weapons will begin on [Thursday] and the task is expected to take two months to complete,» the UN added. The weapons consisting of automatic rifles, machine pistols, heavy machine guns and mortars, along with 5 million rounds of ammunition, were originally imported in January 1972. The ammunition was destroyed two years ago to help decrease tensions on the island. Ironically, the weapons are kept in the UN compound which encompasses the venue for the Clerides-Denktash peace talks – now in their third round – at the abandoned Nicosia international airport. The weapons were ordered by then President Archbishop Makarios amid growing fears that pro-Enosis (union with Greece) groups linked to the Greek military junta in power in Athens were plotting to overthrow him. After Ankara and Greece objected, the guns were kept in UN custody. In another move, the United Nations has agreed to start clearing thousands of invasion-era anti-personnel and anti-tank mines in the UN-manned buffer zone. The Greek Cypriots unilaterally decided to remove all mines they laid during the 1974 invasion, but the Turkish side rejected a joint demining proposal. An estimated 17,000 mines cover the length of the 180-kilometer (110-mile) ceasefire line.
