US White House Press Briefing (96-02-06)
From: http://www.whitehouse.gov
THE WHITE HOUSE BRIEFING ROOM
February 6, 1996
PRESS BRIEFING BY MIKE MCCURRY
1:23 P.M. EST
THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
For Immediate Release
February 6, 1996
PRESS BRIEFING
BY MIKE MCCURRY
The Briefing Room
1:23 P.M. EST
[...]
Q Mike, can you confirm a wire story that the
President wrote to Turkish leader Tansu Ciller? And did he write a
letter to any Greek leader?
MR. MCCURRY: I know that the story has come out of
Ankara saying that he wrote to Prime Minister Ciller. I would hasten
to add that he also wrote to President Demirel and to Prime Minister
Simitis, the new Greek Prime Minister. And, again, it was in
furtherance of his discussions with all three last week. We thanked
them for their cooperation and successfully resolving the issue
involving an islet in the Aegean Sea.
Q What does the letter say?
MR. MCCURRY: It says "thank you."
Q Is it a similar or duplicate letter to all three?
MR. MCCURRY: I believe the letters to all three were
virtually identical. It thanks them for following up on the
President's phone conversation and expresses the President's
gratitude for their willingness to address this in a fashion that did
not allow tensions to escalate.
Q And does he go on to ask them to further cooperate
in the process of resolving the Cyprus dispute?
MR. MCCURRY: It reiterated our view that for two such
close and valued allies, we hope that they can address issues in
dispute in a way that avoids tension and avoids escalation. I'm not
aware of the issue made reference to, that the letters made reference
to the Cyprus issue.
[...]
Okay. Thank you.
THE PRESS: Thank you.
END
1:44 P.M.
|
