116. Telegram From the Embassy in Turkey to the Department of State1

5815. Subject: Cyprus Situation.

1.
Secretary’s message for PriMin,2 as conveyed to me by Buffum, passed to PriMin soon after 2045 local time.PriMin continues to be in National Defence Council meeting, and I have as yet had no response.
2.
In meantime, [less than 1 line not declassified] information being received at Embassy here strongly suggests that Turks are not making effective effort to adhere to ceasefire and [less than 1 line not declassified]suggests that on contrary they are willfully continuing to ignore it, and placing entire effort in jeopardy. I have, on my own initiative, passed my “impression” in this regard to MFA SecGen Erez, but I do not feel I should pursue this further without having balanced appraisal from Department which concludes that Turks, in fact, constitute principal threat to ceasefire breakdown. Therefore, request soonest Department’s appraisal as to: a) seriousness of threat of ceasefire deterioration and b) which of the parties is the most responsible.
Macomber
  1. Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 634, Country Files, Middle East, Turkey, Vol. IV. Secret; Flash; Exdis handle as Nodis. Received at 4:45 p.m. Repeated Flash to Athens and Nicosia.
  2. Transmitted in telegram 158100 to Ankara, July 22, Kissinger’s message to Ecevit welcomed the news of Turkish confirmation of the cease-fire. Kissinger called the act an “important act of statesmanship” and stated that the next indispensable step was a meeting of the three guarantor powers (Greece, Turkey, United Kingdom), which Callaghan had proposed for July 23. (Ibid., Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 634, Country Files, Middle East, Turkey, Vol. IV)