Press Releases
Detroit Public TV to Premiere Cyprus Documentary on Sept. 13WASHINGTON, DC (August 20, 2010) —Detroit Public Television, WTVS Channel 56, will premiere the one-hour documentary, “Cyprus Still Divided: A U.S. Foreign Policy Failure,” Mon., Sept. 13, 2010, at 10 p.m. It will be released to public television stations nationwide in late September (check local listings). “Cyprus Still Divided” reveals the web of domestic politics, the realpolitik of Henry Kissinger, and the positions of successive U.S. presidents which have played a role in Cyprus’ continuing division between the European Union nation of Cyprus in the south and the Turkish-Cyprus region in the north. The documentary presents new evidence, including a recently declassified 1974 State Department memorandum from Secretary of State Kissinger, who wrote, “There is no American reason why the Turks should not have one-third of Cyprus.” As stated by well know journalist Christopher Hitchens “It’s difficult to encapsulate the wickedness of Kissinger’s role in a sentence but if you wanted to try for a epigram it would be: ‘To support the Greeks as long as they were fascists and to turn against them only when they were democrats, to support the Turks only when they were aggressors and to end up with a country ruined and partitioned’ which, I have to believe, was, in fact, the objective of the policy in the first place” Although it has been 36 years since the invasion of Cyprus by Turkey, the fact that the island is still divided remains an issue for Turkey’s consideration for European Union membership and has other practical implications. Just recently, Jennifer Lopez was scheduled to perform in Turkish occupied Cyprus and a firestorm of Cypriot and international protest forced her to cancel and apologize to Cyprus for initially accepting the invitation. Click here for further info. “Cyprus Still Divided” also looks to the future of the divided island in the context of the ongoing settlement negotiations between the Republic of Cyprus and the Turkish Cypriot community that began in September 2008. Whether the U.S. will play a role in reunifying Cyprus remains to be seen. “We appreciate Detroit Public Television for premiering this important documentary that scrutinizes the United States’ foreign policy perspective of the Cyprus issue,” said American Hellenic Institute Foundation Executive Director Nick Larigakis said. “We strongly encourage the Detroit community to tune-in to watch.” The documentary was produced by Emmy Award-winning filmmaker, George Veras and made possible by solicited financial support through The American Hellenic Institute Foundation , a 501 (c) 3 non-profit, tax-exempt educational and research organization. The DVD is available for purchase at $24.95 plus $3.50 for shipping and handling from pr@ahiworld.org. Journalist Christopher Hitchens on Kissinger: “It’s difficult to encapsulate the wickedness of Kissinger’s role in a sentence but if you wanted to try for a epigram it would be: ‘To support the Greeks as long as they were fascists and to turn against them only when they were democrats, to support the Turks only when they were aggressors and to end up with a country ruined and partitioned’ which, I have to believe, was, in fact, the objective of the policy in the first place.” ### For additional information, please contact C. Franciscos Economides at (202) 785-8430 or at pr@ahiworld.org. For general information about the activities of AHI, please see our website at https://www.ahiworld.org. |
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Detroit Public TV to Premiere Cyprus Documentary on Sept. 13
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