OCR Text |
Show U.S.S. Lifting the arms embargo against Turkey was, in my opinion, in the best interests of the United States. I have always maintained that the Turkish invasion of Cyprus was wrong, and that they should seek an equitable political solution with Greece. But the embargo did not help to solve the problem. If anything, it created greater hostility among the Turks and seriously weakened the political and diplomatic leverage this country might have used to encourage them to take a less hard-line position. In addition, the embargo has seriously weakened Turkey, a traditional and important NATO ally, and prompted it to seek better relations with the Soviet Union. This has, in turn, weakened the southern flank of the NATO alliance and jeopardized Western defense strategies. I'm hopeful that the conditions that were added to the lifting of the embargo em-bargo will lead to a peaceful settlement set-tlement of the Cyprus dispute by creating an atmosphere in which menaingful negotiations can take place. |