Current Events

Greek-Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades has left for Sharm el-Sheikh in Egypt in order to attend the first ever edition of the EU-Arab League Summit. The leaders expects to have bilateral meetings with various heads of states in the region within the event and hopes to adequately to promote Cyprus’ bid to play a more coordinating role in introducing strategies and policies and strategies by neighboring countries to help combat the issue of climate change.

The summit, officially called the EU-League of Arab States (LAS) summit, is landmark, in the sense that it will be bringing in heads of states of both Arab and EU leaders on the same platform. The meeting will be co-chaired by European Council President Donald Tusk and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi. Also representing the EU will be Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker.

President Anastasiades is set to meet Abdel Fattah al-Sisi (President of Egypt), Saad Hariri (the Premier of Lebanon), and Kind Abdullah of Jordan. Said meetings will act as a moment of opportunity for the island nation to promote its bilateral and trilateral policies and highlight its role as a dependable European nation that can help boost security in the region.

Accompanying Anastasiades will be government spokesman Prodromos Prodromou.

According to the results a study conducted by Eurostat, Cyprus has 3,286 hectares (ha) of land covered with fruit trees.

Most of said fruit vegetation consist of orange trees, which take up 1109 ha of space, followed by 377 ha of apple trees, of 933 ha mandarin trees, 312 ha of lemon trees, 299 ha of peach trees, 186 ha of apricot trees and 71 ha of pear trees.

According to the study, which has data collected over a period of 5 years, over 1.3 million hectares of land in the entire EU region was covered with fruit trees. Most of this contained apple orchards (which covered a third of the area), followed by orange groves (covering one fifth). The remainder areas consisted of peach trees, citrus fruit trees, pears, apricots and lemon groves.

Overall, it was found that the planted with fruit trees accounted for 1% of all utilized agricultural areas.

Following the recent series of openings and expansions on the island nation is The Radisson Hotel Group, which, according a new master development agreement with SunnySeeker Hotels, will be expanding in Cyprus from its current three to six hotels within 2025.

The Radisson Hotel Group currently runs three hotels on the island nation – the Radisson Blu Hotel in Larnaca, and the soon-to-open Radisson Blu Larnaca Beach resort and the Radisson Blu Conference & Airport Hotel. The latter two are also located in Larnaca. With the new deal in place, the current 500 rooms that are currently in operations or under construction will grow to over a thousand in the next six years.

In a statement to the press, Antonis Hadjinicolas, the general manager of SunnySeeker Hotels said that working with the Radisson Hotel Group has been nothing short of fantastic, and that they are looking forward to further developments with them.

SunnySeeker Hotels and the Radisson Hotel Group have been in partnership since 2015.

Amid the impending crisis, Nikos Christodoulides, foreign minister of Cyprus has announced that Cyprus in collaboration with EU authorities is making preparations regarding the status of British bases post-Brexit.

According to the minister, an “interim solution” would be applied to British bases on the island nation, to avoid any potential mass disruptions caused Brexit without any kind of prior agreement. Speaking to the press right after a meeting of the cabinet, Christodoulides explained how he briefed the council of ministers on all developments concerning Brexit and declared that the preparations started from October 2017 have now been intensified.

He further added that the island nation’s government is in contact with Brussels so that management by the EU, if needed, can be possible.

As of now, the British Overseas Territories on Cyprus include the British Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia (S.B.A.), with over 11,000 Cypriots living within them. So long as UK remains an EU member, any movement between the SBA and Cyprus would remain unrestricted. In case the UK does depart completely from the EU without any agreement, however, the free movement will cease, making the SBAs virtually a legal no-man’s land.

Needless to say, this can cause wide-scale disruption in the lives of over 16,000 people living, which includes both Cypriot and British nationals.

As part of an increasing level of cooperation between Turkey and Turkish Cyprus, Minister Cavusoglu, foreign minister of Turkey, will be visiting the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC).

The meeting will have the Turkish foreign minister meeting with Mustafa Akinci, TRNC President, as well as TRNC authorities, along with political party leaders and discussing opportunities that would help in the enhancement of cooperation between Turkey and Turkish Cyprus. The meeting will also help the two states coordinate on recent happenings regarding the Cyprus issue as well as other developments in the Eastern Mediterranean.

Cyprus, an Eastern Mediterranean island has remained divided since 1974 after a coup from the Greek Cypriots was followed by violence against Turkish on the island – to the extent that Ankara had to intervene as a guarantor power.

The division later led to the creation of an “independent” state called The Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, on Nov. 15, 1983. The state, however, is recognized by independent only by Turkey and no other country or organization – especially Greek Cyprus.

The British government has announced that it would pay a sum total of £1.0 million (i.e. 1.1 million euros) to the thirty-three Cypriots who had earlier claimed that they were mistreated while in detention during the anti-British rule campaign on the island nation.

In a written statement, Alan Duncan, Junior foreign minister has revealed the payments that are related to the so-named “Emergency” period of when Cyprus used to be a British colony (during 1955-1959). He announced that the government, while not admitting any kind liability (primarily due to the fact that issues as far behind as 60 years ago were impossible to be weighed with certainty), has reached mutual agreement with the claimants, and is willing to compensate for the losses.

He went on to express regret, speaking of how the British government is unhappy with the transition of Cyprus from British administration to independence having taken loss of life and violence over five years.

The Cypriots – all Greek – had previously made claims of human rights abuses and torture at the colonialists’ hands and had started their battle in 2015. Some of these were former members of the Eoka, the Greek Cypriot nationalist guerrilla organization which fought against British rule.

In addition to the series of accolades the island country has been receiving, it has now been declared as the third most sought-after family beach destinations on a new ‘Family Beach Index.’

The index, which ranks 50 family beach destinations across eight European countries, has researchers looking at a variety of factors, from attractions, flight durations from the United Kingdom, sea and air temperatures, and hotel costs, among others.

The destination to come first on the ranking was Crete, with 10 different amusement and water parks (the highest) 10, and an average temperature of around 24C during the May to October period. Costa Blanca came second on the list.

Cyprus, third on the list, has more water parks than Costa Blanca, scores higher on average sea temperatures but has an inherent disadvantage of being the furthest away from the UK.

Following Cyprus on the rankings are Costa Brava and Costa Dorada, at number four and five respectively, Majorca at number six, Malta at number seven, Corfu at number eight, Sardinia nine, and Costa De La Luz in Spain at number ten.

The index was compiled by On the Beach – a travel firm. A spokesperson for the firm said how despite the long flight duration, Cyprus’ picturesque beaches, temperatures and family-friendly attractions made it a worthwhile destination.

In the landmark decision on the level of cooperation between southern European countries, a special summit will be held in Nicosia that will address and discuss issues that have both a direct and indirect bearing on their economy and polity.

7 southern European countries (who are also members of the European Union) will be holding the summit- namely Italy, France, Greece, Spain, Portugal, Malta, and of course Cyprus. The countries will be discussing several issues, from region-specific issues, to Europe-specific issues (like the uncertainty of Brexit) to human interest issues such as climatic changes, energy, security, and immigration, among others.

The summit will have the heads of government or state of all the seven countries attending. They will discuss important issues such as the EU-Arab League meeting and the multi-annual financial framework for 2021-2027.

Nicos Christodoulides, Foreign Minister of Cyprus has expressed his interest in the success of the summit, emphasizing how important it is in the backdrop the current state of affairs in the EU, and Brexit, the discussion of the same at the May 19 Romania meeting. He further added that a declaration on the same will be issued once the summit is over.

According to Christodoulides, Cyprus will make sure that the immigration crisis remains an issue properly discussed. The island nation had previously warned the EU of unprecedented migrant arrival (with over 4000 immigrants having arrived in the last year on Cyprus alone – the island nation currently has a population of 1.2 million, with an increase of 1000 per month). The minister added that this problem is also being faced by other countries attending the summit, and they must come to a solution that is fair to both them and the migrants. He aims to have a very concrete answer on the declaration in this regard.

Cypriot police have announced that they are on the hunt for the two men who were trying to adopt a baby girl they originally purchased from Philippines through a domestic worker. Both the two men and the baby girl are currently missing.

The two men – who are believed to be a couple, consist of a foreign national and Greek Cypriot, and are facing several serious charges, including (but not limited to) forgery, conspiracy and human trafficking.

According to Cyprus Police, the men had a the female domestic worker buy the baby from the Philippines and bring it back to Cyprus under the pretense that it was hers. As it turns out, the woman herself is a former employee of father of the Greek Cypriot man. She was found and arrested and is presently under police custody.

The baby and the couple, however, have thus far managed to evade arrest, so much so that they are now categorized as ‘missing.’

The municipality of Strovolos has been declared as the “green capital” of Cyprus after receiving the Green Moufflon Award during the 2018 edition of the Environmental Awards.

The high-profile event saw a twenty-eight different awards being given by the government to communities, municipalities and organizations, in addition to a special distinction that was won by Cyta – an organization which earned the highest environmental score.

President Nicos Anastasiades, who was present at the award ceremony, spoke highly of the awards format and had great appreciation for both the government and the winners at the event. He showed immense pride in heading a government that genuinely cares about green policies and actively invests in them to promote sustainable development and generate and maintain jobs that would contribute to the environment.

He also showed his deep appreciation for communities, businesses and organizations, stating how important a role they have played promoting a cyclical economy by promoting eco-friendly elements such as carbon-neutrality, saving of energy and water, and preservation of cultural monuments and biodiversity, among others.

The organization, which has of recent been trying to find ways to make its services more effective and efficient, has found a way to incorporate modern technology into its practice. According to an statement made by Andreas Gregoriou, Director of the Department of Postal Services to the Cyprus News Agency (CNA), the Cyprus Post is looking for a suitable way to utilize unmanned drones which can deliver parcels of up to 4kg to recipients.

Gregoriou added that the department is maintaining contact with the University of Cyprus KIOS Research Centre to come up with a suitable and practical plan. He went on to explain how the post was “at a very satisfactory level” as regards seeing the potential of utilize drone technology to make the Cyprus postal services more efficient in delivering correspondence – and especially parcels and small packages within time.

According to Gregoriou, the Cyprus Post should be in a position where it could utilize drones for delivery later in this year, pending Civil Aviation approvals.

A retired pensioner, who had been missing for close to two weeks has been found dead. Eleni Plakidi, 69, was discovered dead in the Akamas region after being missing from her home in Argaka since January 10.

According to reports, her body was found at a distance from where her car was previously found. Initial reports could not determine any concrete cause of death – a post mortem will soon be done to determine what really is the cause of the death.

Ms. Plakidi disappeared from her home on January 10. She had left home to buy something from a nearby kiosk and was not seen or heard from since. Police discovered her car near the local beach around a day after her disappearance.

Ms. Plakidi’s family, who were the ones to report her missing have stated that she was suffering from the effect of memory problems.

In what can be considered a very surprising move during the height of Brexit, a well-known British shipping company has registered an entire fleet of ships to Cyprus. P & O Ferries has registered its English Channel operating fleet in Cyprus after having two of its ships re-flagged.

Said ships, which were set to be named “Pride of Britain” and the “Pride of France” – operate between Dover, England and Calais, France.Other ships from the fleet which have been registered in Cyprus include the “European Seaway,” “Pride of Burgundy,” “Pride of Kent”, and “Pride of Canterbury”.

According to a statement made by a spokesman of the shipping company, the decision, which has been made in advance of the official Brexit in March 2019, has been made after thorough review of the flag status of all ships on the English Channel. After much consideration, the decision to re-flag all ships under Cyprus has been made.

He added the reason for choosing Cyprus over any other country – the island nation stands as a member of the “white list” of both the Paris and Tokyo “Memoranda of Understanding”, and will allow for more seamless maritime activity due to lesser ship inspections and other operational delays. The move will also allow the fleet to have a more benefiting tax system, since the ships will be flagged under a country that is a member of the European Union.

The 62-year-old man who was arrested on Sunday for shooting a dog dead has been released after being charged.

The man was arrested following a complaint from the owner of the dog, another 53-year-old from Paphos, who had seen the older man shooting both his dogs in his own front yard, one of whom was shot dead while the other injured.

According to the shooter, he did so in defense of the dogs earlier getting into his yard and killing his rabbits. He did try to throw water first to shoo them away but resorted to shooting them as when they became aggressive.

The Police are currently investigating the matter and looking into whether the owner of the dogs did in fact taken precautions to secure them. The man has claimed innocence, saying that the dogs must have run out when no one was looking and one of the gates was open.

The dead dog and rabbits were taken by the vet department while the injured dog was taken to a vet for treatment.

The vet department confirmed that the cause of death for the dog’s was gunshot wound caused by the hunting rifle. It also confirmed dog bite marks on the rabbits.

In a spree of traffic arrests made by the police, a 28-year-old man who was driving on a speed that was twice of the prescribed limit was stopped near Latsia.

The man was seen to have been driving on the Limassol Nicosia highway at a speed of 214km/hour, which is more than twice the speed limit.

A routine police operation ended his driving spree. Upon testing his blood, it was found that his alcohol intake was also over the set limit – while the first showed 45μg (twice more than the allowed 22), the second test failed to get any reading.

The man was arrested by the police and will be produced before court in the near future.

After the launch of casinos in Nicosia and Limassol, Larnaca sees the launch of its first casino.

The casino, which is launched by Cyprus Casinos (C2), is located at the Larnaca airport, features forty-two high-end slot machines that stand across in two separate spaces within the airport terminal. The first of these terminals is accessible exclusively to departing passengers, while the second is accessible to the general public.

Craig Ballantyne, C2’s Property President of City of Dreams Mediterranean showed his happiness regarding the expansion and went on to talk about the latest addition to the C2 portfolio. He stated that the latest casino will a unique entertainment experience to tourists as well as locals travelling within the island nation – something that has never been done before.

The launch was announced by Eleni Kaloyirou, CEO of Hermes Airports.

The casino, which will be open 24/7, will allow visitors of a minimum of 21 years of age, and will observe all of C2’s responsible gaming policies posted both online and at all locations.

C2 will open another 2 satellite casinos in Ayia Napa and Paphos. These will also be also known as Cyprus Casinos ‘C2’.

According to a study conducted by the national agency for demographic and family policy, the average age for marriage in the island country has shifted to 30 years old.

Statistics have revealed that men in Cyprus enter their first marriage at age of 31.2 years on an average whereas women do so at around 29.4 years. Said figures tend to be lower in the rural areas.

In 2017, 1,896 men within the age group of 30-34 entered marriage for the first time, while in 2018 249 men and 118 women got married, along with 36 women who had crossed 60 years of age.

The total number of marriages in a year have also decreased. In 2017 this figure stood at 13,062 from 13,558 in 2016. The downward trend is expected to continue in 2018.

2017 saw a grand total of 9,120 civil weddings, with 2,301 weddings being held in September, Cypriot’s month of choice for marriage ceremonies.

Other statistics, such as that of divorce, were also revealed. With every 1 in three marriages leading to divorce, divorce rates in Cyprus reached 307.7 per 1,000 marriages in 2017 – more than seven time from the very low rate 41.6 in 1980.

According to a survey, Cyprus has been found as the best and most popular winter destination for Britons in 2019, followed by Canary Islands Lanzarote and Tenerife.

The research, which was conducted by the UK Post Office’s Travel Money team, considered factors such as the cost of a one-week holiday package and the cost of dinner (including wine), as well as the average price of beer and coffee.

Within Cyprus, the city of Paphos proved to be the most popular destination, with trips costing around £381.98pp on an average.

The biggest reason contributing to Cyprus’ popularity is perhaps the fact that temperatures in the island nation are not too hot, and definitely much more pleasant than the brutal winter months of the UK. Not only is there an abundance of sunshine, the temperatures go up to around 16C.

Though not exactly the ideal weather to laze on the beach, it is quite suitable for people who like exploring and sightseeing.

Other popular destination on the list included Dubai, Phuket and Cancun.

An explosion on a product tanker off Cyprus’ southern coast had started a massive fire that has at least five crewmembers injured.

The explosion took place on Athlos, a 7,000 dwt product tanker that has left the port of Larnaca on a ballast voyage. The blast happened sometime during amidships and had 5 crew members going to the side. Two of these, both Indian nationals, sustained serious injuries in the shape of severe burns.

All the five were rescued by Cypriot responders, who ferried them to the shore to get treated. The two severely burnt were sent to hospital in Nicosia, while the remaining three, who only suffered minor burns, were given first aid.

Responders included the fire department, the health ministry, local harbor tugs, the JRCC Larnaca, and the Cypriot port and maritime police.

The cause of the explosion is yet to be known and is current being investigated by authorities. Meanwhile, the Athlos will remain in Cyprus pending a detailed examination.

In a move that will serve to bring in more economic revenue to Cyprus, the island nation has appointed its first ever tourism minister.

Savvas Perdios, former hotel executive is all set to be sworn in as the first ever deputy minister for tourism.

The move is part of its strategy to help develop the nation’s tourism sector, which is by far its biggest, and replace the Cyprus Tourism Organization (CTO), a 50-year-old organization which has so far singlehandedly overseen the tourism sector.

The CTO has been highly criticized for being “too slow” on account of its lack of legislative powers. The tourism ministry aims to correct this with better improvements and more power.

With the tourism sector going stronger by the day, it only makes sense to have an body that is dedicated to its development, and has more power than its predecessor.

There are a few commentators however, who doubt the potential of the ministry. The author of an editorial in the Cyprus Mail, for instance, has stated his lack of confidence, saying that the deputy ministry might not be turn out to be efficient in taking decisions and implementing policies after all, given the ever-changing conditions in the tourism market.

Such a line of criticism was also echoed in the local Financial Mirror, where it was stated the ministry might just end up seeing the same fate as the CTO, given the restrictive nature and anti-progressive “civil service” mentality of the government.