`Israel means you no harm’
By Jean Christou
PRESIDENT Ezer Weizman yesterday sought to allay Cyprus’ fears over close military links between Israel and Turkey.
The Israeli president said the agreement “concerns no third party” and he assured President Glafcos Clerides: “Our relations with Ankara are not directed against you.”
The issue was discussed yesterday during official talks between Weizman and President Clerides in Nicosia. But Clerides aired his concerns a second time at a state banquet held in Weizman’s honour last night.
Clerides said he was only interpreting the feelings of the people of Cyprus when he said Israel’s military co-operation with Turkey constitutes “a source of anxiety and concern for our own security”.
“And I do hope that activities in this respect will not be allowed to evolve into developments detrimental to our good relationship,” Clerides said.
Weizman, who is on the island on a two-day official visit and is the first Israeli president ever to do so, said earlier in the day, after talks with Clerides, that the Israel-Turkey agreement “concerns no third party”.
The Israeli president also made it quite clear that his country would not become embroiled in the Cyprus conflict. “I can express my hopes to do something about it,” Weizman said, “but we have enough troubles of our own. I don’t think a country like ours, that hasn’t settled its own problems, is far from settling its own problems, should have pretensions of being able to solve all the problems.”
Weizman repeated Israel’s stance on the Israeli-Turkish agreement at the state dinner and stressed that there is nothing in the agreement with Turkey that could make Israel become involved if Turkey attacked Cyprus.
“Israel is consistent in her determination to speak with those countries and elements in the Muslim world who oppose radicalism and terror. It is within this framework that you must endeavour to understand our relations with Turkey,” Weizman said.
“Needless to say our relations with Ankara are not directed against you. You are our friends and the last thing we would wish to do is harm you. I believe that my visit here proves this more than a thousand witnesses.”
Speaking to reporters after his midday meeting with Clerides, Weizman said relations between Israel and Turkey “are just between Turkey and us”. “It’s an agreement between two friendly countries that has been going on for some time… it has nothing to do with a third country and definitely nothing to do with Cyprus.”
Clerides told journalists he and Weizman had exchanged views on “issues over which we (Cyprus) had some concerns”.
Weizman also said Israel and Turkey have no agreement to attack Syria if Turkey “is in trouble”. He said Israel has had peace with Egypt since 1979. “We have peace with Jordan… and I hope that one day we’ll have an agreement with Syria,” he said. “Right now it looks as if it’s a phantom, a mirage… but we felt exactly the same thing 21 years ago when we started negotiations with Egypt.”
Weizman also expressed the hope that the agreement signed in Washington two weeks ago between Israel and the Palestinians would be successful and would lead to a permanent settlement and a peace agreement with Syria, Lebanon and other countries in the region.
During his visit, which was cut from three to two days, Weizman will also meet Cypriot political party leaders and President of the House of Representatives Spyros Kyprianou.
