Firm position: Cyprus will to permit the transit of gas from Israel to Turkey through its territory.
Cyprus will not allow Israel to supply gas to Turkey using its territory. The matter of the pipeline construction came up in the end of June when Ankara and Tel-Aviv decided to improve their relationship.
However, the Cyprus officials remained firm on this matter: until the Cyprus problem will be resolved, Nicosia is not even going to discuss any possibilities.
The experts stated that the reaction of Cyprus was quite predictable and it would be strange to expect them to help the country which occupied part of the island. Timing was also suitable- the obstacle between Turkey and Israel appeared exactly when Turkey is desperate to find friends.
The mandate of the UN peacekeeping troops has been renewed.
The UN Peacekeeping troops will remain in Cyprus for another 6 months- the UNSC has extended their mandate until the end of January 2017.
The number of troops remains the same – 900 soldiers: they remain in the buffer zone between Cyprus and the occupied Turkish area. The UN however, encourages both sides to resolve the conflict as soon as possible in a diplomatic way. Moreover, there is a notable progress on this matter and both sides never before has so many similarities in their positions.
During this week the Turkish Prime-Minister unexpectedly announced his support for the peaceful negotiations. Benali Yildirim called the to be the last chance, however he also stated that Turkey will keep their military personnel on the island for now.
New forest fires on the island
The Cyprus Fire Service faced the forest fires this week once again- this time in the park in the Paphos district.
The strong wind and dry weather are causing the fire to spread quicker, so the Fire Services used both the fire engines on the ground and specialized aviation.
The Cyprus authorities are trying hard not to have the repetition of the June tragedy, when enormous territories were destroyed and human lives were lost during fires. The authorities are urging the public to be very careful with fire: any spark may become the cause of the catastrophic consequences.
Economy measures: Anastasiades rejected his pension
The local newspapers in Cyprus have published the fact The President of Cyprus rejected to receive his pension. However it is not about his future pension, but about the one which he receives right now- due to his age.
According to the Cyprus legislation men have the right to receive pension after reaching the age of 60 and whether the person is employed or not does not matter.
For almost 2 years the President and 3 Ministers were transferring their pension to the Charity foundation. From now on, the decision was made to save this part of the State funds.
FC Spartak Moscow vs. AEK in Larnaca.
The fans of football had the opportunity to see FC Spartak Moscow playing in Cyprus. The famous Russian team arrived in Larnaca to play with the local team AEK as part of the Europa League Qualifiers.
The match was in difficult weather conditions for the Away team – scorching sun and air temperature was almost +40°C. This however, did not impact the number of fans on the stadium.
In the end match ended in a draw – 1:1, which is a good result for the Cypriot team. The second leg will be in Moscow on the 4th of August.