Written question asked by Roger Gale (Conservative) on Tuesday, 25 October 2022, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Thursday, 27 October 2022. It was answered by Leo Docherty (Conservative) on Tuesday, 1 November 2022 on behalf of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.

Cyprus: Turkey

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, If he will discuss with his Turkish counterpart the resolution of persons missing following the invasion of Cyprus in 1974 and the role that Turkey could play in providing access to military sites for exhumation and the release of information from military archives.

Answer: The UK maintains close contact with the Committee on Missing Persons which is mandated to search for, recover, identify and return to their families the remains of Cypriots from both communities. In July, the UK ensured language was included in the renewal of the mandate for the UN Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus calling on all parties to enhance their cooperation with the Committee on Missing Persons, explicitly through providing full access without delay to all areas and responding in a timely manner to requests for archival information on possible burial sites.

Secondary information

Type: Written question
Reference: 70926
Session: 2022-23
Subjects: Disclosure of information Cyprus Missing persons Military bases Turkey Exhumation
Link: View this Written question on www.parliament.uk