Holbrooke Has Been Through Cyprus As Well

Richard Holbrooke, who had a heart attack during a meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Friday and was taken into intensive surgery, had entered our area of interest with the dissolution of Yugoslavia.

The architect of the Dayton Agreement, which ended the war in Bosnia in 1995, Holbrooke was one of the international actors who came up with the formula to bring the Cyprus problem within the parameters of the European Union – a little known fact. Perhaps he could also be named as one of those who has played a role in making the solution of the problem more difficult.

Holbrooke, who focused on Europe after the dissolution of the Soviet Union, served in the U.S. Embassy in Germany in 1993-94, and then as U.S. Department of State’s assistant secretary for European and Canadian Affairs until 1996.

After this time period, during which the Dayton Agreement was also signed, he became a special envoy to U.S. President Bill Clinton in July 1997.

Sir David Hannay, another one of the important actors in the Cyprus process and one of the influential names in British diplomacy, describes in his book, “Cyprus: The Search for a Solution” (2005), Holbrooke’s use of the European Union as a trump card.

Hannay writes that when Holbrook became a representative, he dove into the Cyprus situation quite suddenly. During a meeting in the American ambassador’s residence in London in the days following Holbrooke’s appointment, Holbrooke stated that he saw Turkey’s entrance into the European Union as the key to resolving the problem of Cypriot independence. If there was progress on this topic, Holbrooke predicted that Turkey would be more amenable to altering the status quo. According to Holbrooke, it was obvious that if Turkey’s candidacy to the E.U. did not result in anything, then Turkey would insist on the status quo in Cyprus and would not see any reason to accept the tough conditions.

During that meeting, Hannay tells Holbrooke that “during a period where the European Union is preoccupied with Agenda 2000,” at a time when it was preparing for the first wave of expansion, “it was not interested in Turkey.”* Holbrooke’s response to this determination is interesting: “Then either we must change the European Union’s attitude, or we must accept that we will be starting the negotiations from the wrong place by trying to make progress on the situation in Cyprus without the Turks being ready.”

“Holbrooke was showing impatience with my statements regarding the complexity of the negotiations. He was saying that I was obsessed with the process when I stressed that the European Union and United Nations processes must be in sync so that they do not conflict. We should not be stuck on the technicalities, and it should be ensured that the actors in key positions make big decisions.”

After this meeting, Sir David Hannay says in his book that he was under the impression that with Holbrooke’s abrupt arrival on the scene, there was not much room left for teamwork. What happened next? While Cyprus was making progress on becoming a full member, the E.U. did not begin negotiations with Turkey and the balance that Holbrooke had suggested was further disrupted.

Holbrooke is an important name in American diplomacy. I remember the day when I heard about his illness. Time has shown that Cyprus’ European Union membership was not a good idea in terms of a solution to the problem and to Turkey’s European goal. Holbrooke was successful in Dayton but not so in Cyprus.

*Editor’s note: Quotations could not be independently verified.