Cyprus signed the Mine
Ban Treaty on 4 December 1997. At the signing ceremony in Ottawa, the head of
the Cypriot delegation linked his government’s signature of the treaty to
its desire “to reduce tension and promote mutual confidence” on the
divided and heavily mined
island.[1] As of March 1999
Cyprus had not ratified the treaty, though its parliament was reported to be in
the process of ratifying it.[2]
Some observers have suggested that due to security concerns, the government of
Cyprus will hesitate to ratify the Mine Ban Treaty as long as Turkey refuses to
sign the treaty.
Cyprus attended the early ban treaty preparatory meetings, but not endorse
the pro-treaty Brussels Declaration in June 1997, and did not participate in the
treaty negotiations in Oslo in September 1997. However, Cyprus voted in favor
of United Nations General Assembly resolutions supporting an antipersonnel mine
ban in 1996, 1997, and 1998.
Cyprus is a state party to the Convention on Conventional Weapons, but has
not yet ratified the 1996 amended Protocol II on mines.
Production, Transfer, Stockpiling and Use
Cyprus has been identified by the U.S. State
Department and U.S. Army as a former producer of antipersonnel landmines, though
the Cypriot government has denied past
production.[3] It is not known
to have ever exported mines. There is no detailed information Cypriot
importation of AP mines. Cyprus currently possesses a stockpile of mines, but
its size and composition is
unknown.[4]
During the 1974 hostilities that resulted in the division of Cyprus, both
Greek Cypriot and Turkish forces laid thousands of mines in and near the buffer
zone or “Green Line” separating the Turkish-controlled area from the
Greek Cypriot-controlled
area.[5]
Eight types of blast and bounding fragmentation AP landmines are known to
have been used in Cyprus, including: the Russian PMD-6 and PMD-7TS, the British
Mark 2, and the U.S.-made M2, M2A3, M2A4, M14, and M16. Anti-tank mines used in
Cyprus include the U.S.-made M6A2 and M15, the Russian YAM-5, the Danish M/52,
the British Mark 7, and the Turkish
4SKG.[6]
Landmine Problem
The government of Cyprus estimated in 1995 that
there were 16,942 mines in Cyprus, of which 7,976 were antipersonnel
mines.[7] According to United
Nations sources, there are 38 known or suspected minefields inside the buffer
zone, and an additional 73 known or suspected minefields within 400 meters of
the buffer zone.[8] The U.S.
State Department estimates a total of 132 mined areas in Cyprus, covering
approximately 1,350 square
kilometers.[9] Observers have
expressed concern that the majority of these mines have reached the mid-point of
their 50-year lifespan and will become increasingly unstable and sensitive to
pressure as they age.[10]
All of the known minefields within the buffer zone have been marked with a
blue sign identifying the minefield number and with the standard international
minefield marker, a red triangle, inscribed with the word “MINE” in
Greek, Turkish, and English. UN sources have expressed concern over the
adequacy of these markings, however, given the tendency of landmines to shift
outside marked areas as a result of rain, landslides, and earthquakes.
Moreover, the exact parameters of minefields are not always known, and neither
side has exhibited a standard pattern for laying minefields. Finally, there is
concern that minefields near the buffer zone have been modified or added to
without notice to the UN. In addition to minefields near the buffer zone, there
remain booby-trapped buildings in urban areas, including several abandoned
villages and the capital,
Nicosia.[11]
Landmine Casualties
Three members of the United Nations Force in
Cyprus (UNFICYP) have been killed by landmines since
1974.[12] In 1998, two
Argentine peacekeepers are reported to have narrowly avoided injury when their
vehicle struck a landmine near the Turkish-controlled village of Lefka. An
unknown number of civilians have been killed and injured by landmines since
1974. In 1997, a 37-year-old father of three was killed by a mine when he
followed his dog into a minefield in a government-controlled area near the
buffer zone.[13]
Mine Clearance
In 1990, a proposal was made to remove all of the
minefields from the buffer zone, based on the opinion of UNFICYP that these
minefields were of no military value. Agreement could not be reached on the
proposal and the project was never
implemented.[14] Two years
later, UNFICYP reportedly proposed that Canadian engineers engage in demining
operations in the buffer zone, but this proposal was also
rejected.[15] Canada again
offered demining assistance in 1998, in connection with its support for the
mediation efforts of the UN Secretary General’s resident representative on
Cyprus, Dame Ann Hercus, and for UN resolutions calling for arms limitations on
the island.[16]
Cypriot president Glafcos Clerides has called for demining and stockpile
destruction on both sides as part of a comprehensive demilitarization of the
island.[17] Rauf Denktash, the
Turkish Cypriot leader, has declared his willingness to permit demining in the
buffer zone if the Cypriot government agrees to certain security measures,
including withdrawal of soldiers from certain areas and leaving weapons
unloaded.[18] The two sides
have failed to reach a consensus on these broader political and military
concerns. As a result, the issue of demining the buffer zone also remains
unresolved. Still outstanding is the question of who is responsible for
clearance in the buffer zone and the north of the island, given that the treaty
holds signatory states responsible for demining only “in mined areas under
its jurisdiction or control.”
[1]Statement by H.E. Mr.
Alecos Shambos, Ambassador, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign
Affairs of the Republic of Cyprus at the Signing Ceremony, Ottawa, 2-4 December
1997.
[2]Human Rights Watch
interview with Mr. Demetris Hadjiargyrou, Second Secretary, Permanent Mission of
Cyprus to the United Nations, 19 March 1999.
[3] Letter from U.S. Army
Foreign Science and Technology Center to Human Rights Watch, 1 November 1993, p.
1; U.S. Department of State, Outgoing Telegram, Unclassified, Subject: landmine
export moratorium demarche, 7 December 1993; Human Rights Watch Fact Sheet,
Antipersonnel Landmine Producers, April 1996. One Army database lists a Cypriot
BPD SB-33 antipersonnel mine.
[4] Information provided by
United Nations sources, August 1998.
[5]United States Department
of State, Hidden Killers: The Global Problem with Uncleared Landmines,
1993, p. 78.
[6] Information provided by
United Nations sources, August 1998.
[7] Information provided by
United Nations sources, August 1998. Also, Country Profiles, United Nations
Demining Database, http:www.un.org.Depts/Landmine/ (Ref. 3/19/99).
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