332. Summary Notes of the 579th Meeting of the National Security Council1
Cyprus
The President opened the meeting by requesting Secretary Rusk to give a summary of the current situation in Cyprus.
[Page 681]Secretary Rusk: Cyrus Vance, the President’s special emissary, has done a superb job and has warded off war between Turkey and Greece. He did not want to embarrass Luke Battle but said that he was delighted to have had him as Assistant Secretary working on this problem on an hourly basis. He asked Mr. Battle to outline where we now are in our effort to end the Crisis over Cyprus.
Assistant Secretary Battle: Is optimistic that war between Greece and Turkey would be avoided. To Mr. Vance belongs the credit for the astonishing progress which has been made in keeping the Turkish-Greek crisis over Cyprus from turning into hostilities. Provisions of a statement which both Greece and Turkey have accepted (copy attached)2 were summarized. Mr. Vance is now in Cyprus trying to persuade Cyprus President Makarios to accept this agreement. Makarios could cause trouble in many ways, but the expectation is that he will not block the Vance effort.
The problem of Cyprus will be with us for some time to come, difficulties will rise in the future, for example, reaching an agreement to expand the role of the United Nations, but for the moment a Greek-Turkish war has been avoided.
Secretary Rusk: Turkey wants the United Nations Security Council to approve a new and expanded UN mandate covering Cyprus. We do not think Council action is necessary but the problem is in the hands of the Secretary General and the heat is off us. The Turks can more easily live with the failure of the Secretary General to obtain a new mandate from the UN Security Council than they could if we had agreed to get a new mandate and had been unsuccessful.
Everyone is appreciative that the President made Vance available for this assignment, adding that without his activity, Turkey would now be at war with Greece.
The President: Asked General Wheeler to summarize the military situation.
General Wheeler: Tension between the two countries has somewhat abated, pending the outcome of the Vance negotiations.
- 1.
- Turkey had an advantage over Greece in the air and on land. The Greeks have an advantage at sea because of their greater naval strength.
- 2.
- If Greeks [Turks?] chose to invade Greek Thrace, they could advance rapidly, probably as far as Salonika.
- 3.
- The Turks could put several divisions in Cyprus, probably on the north side in the Kyrenia area, in two to three weeks. They could gain control of the island, only some 40 miles from Turkey, despite Greek opposition.
- 4.
- If the Turks attack, it would take them 24 hours to gain air superiority by pre-emptive air strikes on Greek bases. They would probably invade Cyprus but probably would not invade Greece from Thrace.
CIA Director Helms: We have no reports of Soviet military activity in the area. However, the Russians are fishing in troubled waters by egging on the Turks and telling the Cypriots that Turkey was bluffing.
[Here follows brief discussion of the Soviet Union and Vietnam.]