UN chief welcomes Turkey's move to open military areas in Cyprus in search for missing

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Thursday welcomed Turkey's move to open military areas in Cyprus in search for persons missing in past conflict.

Turkey has agreed to provide the Committee on Missing Persons (CMP) excavation teams access to 30 suspected burial sites in military areas in the north of Cyprus.

The CMP, which comprises a Greek Cypriot, a Turkish Cypriot and a representative of the International Red Cross, said on Thursday that access to military zones would be allowed for three years, starting as of Jan. 1, 2016.

The move is considered as a major breakthrough in four decades as it may lead to the exhumation of hundreds of persons who disappeared during the 1974 Turkish occupation of part of Cyprus.

Since 1974, Turkish Cypriots occupied over one third of the Cypriot territory in the north, while the Greek Cypriots occupied the southern part.

"The Secretary-General is encouraged by the steps being taken to build trust and confidence between the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot communities as the two sides have begun intensified talks this month," said a statement released by Ban's spokesperson.

"The United Nations remains committed to supporting the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot leaders in the talks aimed at achieving a comprehensive settlement in Cyprus," it added.

More than 2,000 people, of them about 1,508 Greek Cypriots, disappeared in the 1974 fighting.

According to the latest CMP data, 458 missing Greek Cypriots and 145 missing Turkish Cypriots have been identified, leaving 1,050 Greek Cypriots and 348 Turkish Cypriots missing.

The CMP, which has been carrying out exhumations since 2006, also welcomed the Turkish move, saying that it had repeatedly stressed that time was running out to obtain critical witness information regarding burial sites of people killed during and after the fighting. Enditem