Month: April 2022

Prime Minister of Luxembourg Xavier Bettel is paying Cyprus an official visit next Thursday May 5th. Ukraine, energy, migration crisis and Cyprus issue will be on the agenda of the talks.

The head of President Anastasiades’ press office Andreas Iosif said in a written statement that the two men will discuss ways to end the aggression in Ukraine and issues related to EU’s energy sufficiency as well as the migration crisis and ways to enhance the cooperation between small EU member states.

Iosif said that Cyprus and Luxembourg have excellent relations and during the meeting the President Anastasiades and Bettel will examine ways to further enhance the bilateral cooperation.

Cyprus President will brief the Prime Minister of Luxembourg on the Cyprus peace negotiations and the efforts to resume them, as well as about the Confidence Building Measures that he put on the table to this end.President Anastasiades is expected to underline the need for the EU to play a more vital role in the peace talks and will note also the need for Turkey to show a constructive stance and to terminate the violation of Cyprus’ sovereign rights.

Cyprus has been divided since the 1974 Turkish invasion. The latest round of peace talks under the UN aegis took place in the summer of 2017 in the Swiss resort of Crans Montana and ended inconclusively.

Source: Cyprus News Agency

Meteorological services of Cyprus, Greece and Israel will sign a Memorandum of Technical Cooperation on May 3rd in Nicosia.

The MoU will be signed by the Directors of the Meteorological Services of Cyprus, Greece and Israel, Kleanthis Nikolaidis, Lieutenant Commander (I) Dimitrios Sideridis and Nir Stav, respectively. The MoU signing ceremony will be addressed by Minister of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment Costas Kadis and the Director of the Meteorological Services of Cyprus.

The MoU provides for cooperation in all areas of the activities of the three Services. Among the goals of the MoU are the full understanding of the weather in the eastern Mediterranean region through the exchange of data, the understanding of climate trend and its consequences in the eastern Mediterranean, the preparation of more detailed now-casting, staff training and exchange of experience and cooperation in all areas of responsibility of the meteorological services.

The MoU was concluded following the joint declaration of December 23, 2018 in Beersheba, Israel, by Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades, Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu and Prime Minister of Greece Alexis Tsipras.

Source: Cyprus News Agency

Two cases of acute hepatitis of unknown aetiology have been detected in Cyprus on the basis of the definition set by the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control, the Ministry of Health said Thursday.

In a press release, the Ministry says that based on the definition set by the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) and announced in recent days, it announces that two cases of acute hepatitis of unknown aetiology that meet the definition have been detected in children aged 5 and 4 years old, who fell ill in November 2021 and March 2022 respectively.

The Ministry says that it is monitoring the increase in cases of acute hepatitis of unknown aetiology in children under 16 years of age, mainly 2-5 years old, recorded recently in Europe, United Kingdom and America, adding thatmany of the cases reported gastrointestinal symptoms mainly abdominal pain, diarrhea , vomiting and often followed by jaundice. The majority of the children concerned did not have a fever.

It adds that the international health organisations (WHO, ECDC, CDC) are working together to identify the agent causing the acute hepatitis, while the data so far indicate a specific type of adenovirus (type 41) as the predominant cause. The common viruses that cause acute viral hepatitis (hepatitis viruses A, B, C, D and E) have not been detected in any of these cases.

It notes that cases have been investigated since October 2021 and the association of these cases as a side effect of the COVID-19 vaccine is not confirmed as the vast majority of children do not have a history of vaccination.

“Based on the above, andon the definition set by the ECDC and announced in recent days, the Ministry informs that two cases of acute hepatitis of unknown aetiology have been detected, that meet the definition, in children aged 5 and 4 years, who fell ill in November 2021 and March 2022 respectively,” the press release says.

The Ministry says that if parents notice any symptoms in their children like general malaise, dark-coloured urine, discoloured faeces, jaundice, yellowing of the skin and eyes, they should contact their doctor.

It also adviseshand washing; avoiding contact with the nose, the eyes and mouth; covering the mouth and the nose or covering with the elbow when about to cough or sneeze. In case a child develops any symptoms, it is advised to stay home and avoid contact with others.

Concluding, the Ministry says itcontinues to monitor the situation in collaboration with clinicians.

Source: Cyprus News Agency

In 2020, the life expectancy at birth in the European Union was 80.4 years, decreasing slightly compared to 2019, while women continued to have a higher life expectancy than men, according to data released by Eurostat, the statistical office of the EU.

Life expectancy in Cyprus in 2020 was 82.4 years, which was higher than the EU average, having increased slightly compared with 2019 (82.3 years).

Overall, the regions in the EU with the highest levels of life expectancy at birth were located in France, Spain, Italy and Greece.

Also, life expectancy in 2020 was 5.7 years higher for women (83.2 years) than men (77.5 years). The gap between the sexes was smaller in Cyprus, since life expectancy was 4 years higher for women (84.4 years) than men (80.4 years).

In fact, female life expectancy was higher than male life expectancy in every NUTS level 2 region with available data.

Compared with 2019, the life expectancy at birth experienced a decrease (-0.9 years). Men experienced a larger decrease in life expectancy (-1.0 years) than women (-0.8 years). However, this reduction in life expectancy at birth is related to the sudden increase in mortality in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The EU region with the highest life expectancy at birth in 2020 was the French island of Corsica (84.0), followed by the Balearic Islands in Spain (83.9) and the Epirus region in Greece (83.8).

On the other hand, the EU regions with the lowest life expectancy at birth were all in Bulgaria: North-West (72.1), North-Central (72.8), and North and South-East Bulgaria (72.9).

Corsica also had the highest female life expectancy (87.0 years), followed by the Spanish region of Galicia (86.7). Two French regions (Loire and Midi-Pyrénées), the Åland Islands in Finland and Epirus recorded the same female life expectancy; 86.4 years.

The highest levels of male life expectancy at birth were recorded in the Epirus region in Greece, the region of Umbria in central Italy and the Balearic Islands in Spain (all 81.4).

Source: Cyprus News Agency

Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades continues his meetings with Estonian officials in Tallinn, as part of his official visit to the capital of the Baltic country since Thursday morning.

According to a Presidency statement, the President visited the Tallinn City Hall today, where he met with the Mayor of the city Mihhail Kõlvart, signed the City Hall’s visitors’ book and then was given a tour of the Municipal Hall building.

Subsequently, President Anastasiades, together with his wife and members of the Cypriot delegation, visited the oldest pharmacy in Europe, Raeapteek, which has been operating in the same place since 1422 and includes a museum area where medicines prepared in the Middle Ages are exhibited.

Afterwards, the President of the Republic attended a lunch hosted in his honour by the Speaker of the Estonian Parliament Jüri Ratas.

Source: Cyprus News Agency

The set of Confidence Building Measures (CBMs) which Nicosia promotes can build trust and greater cooperation between the two communities and serve as a catalyst for the effort to reach a lasting solution, Cyprus Foreign Minister, Ioannis Kasoulides, has said.

In a speech on Wednesday evening during a reception hosted by the Ambassador of the Netherlands to Cyprus, Elke Merks-Schaapveld, on the occasion of the King’s Day in the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Kasoulides said that the implementation of these CBMs concerns, among others, the fenced area of Varosha, the airport of Tymbou, the port of Famagusta, as well as issues pertaining the Cyprus problem in general. “It will also enhance our efforts to convince Turkey to refrain from its illegal actions in Varosha and within Cyprus’ maritime zones,” he added.

Moreover, he noted that “despite Turkey’s continued provocations, our side remains focused in creating conducive conditions for the resumption of the negotiations the soonest possible. To this end, I have put forward a proposal consisting of win-win Confidence Building Measures to end the ongoing impasse and after a long period pave the way for peace talks to resume,” Kasoulides said.

He went on to say that “this is the state of play at the moment with regard to the Cyprus question” and assured of his “strong commitment and determination to engage once again in results-oriented negotiations for a solution of the Cyprus problem, within the framework of the relevant UN Security Council resolutions.”

Kasoulides also reaffirmed the excellent level of the bilateral relations between Cyprus and the Netherlands. “Over the years, our countries have established a concrete and close cooperation in various fields, reflected at the political and economic levels but also through people-to-people contacts,” he noted.

He added that “the strong bonds of friendship between our countries and peoples have always been based on our joint democratic values and the respect for human rights and the rule of law to address our common challenges, preserve our European values, our solidarity and our vision of the future.”

He noted that “currently the Union is faced with a number of challenges. Our unity in defending our values is now more needed than ever.”

“I am referring, of course, to the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the unprecedented challenges it has created. We therefore, stand by Ukraine and its people, conveying our strong support and respect to the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine during these difficult times,” Kasoulides stressed.

He said that “Cyprus and our people have their own tragic experiences of foreign invasion, as a result of the illegal Turkish military invasion and occupation of Cyprus since 1974.”

Moreover, he recalled that “Turkey proceeds with its illegal plans and activities in the fenced area of Varosha, in full defiance of the relevant Security Council resolutions, despite the strong condemnation by the international community, the UN and our EU partners.”

Kasoulides noted that the Netherlands is “a valuable partner for Cyprus and has shown its commitment to stand by the Cypriot people as a valued contributor to UNFICYP as well as to the UN Committee on Missing Persons.”

“I once again thank you for your support to our efforts to reach a viable and comprehensive settlement of the Cyprus problem that will end the ongoing Turkish occupation, restore and ensure the enjoyment of human rights and fundamental freedoms by all Cypriots,” he underlined.

Cyprus has been divided since 1974, when Turkey invaded and occupied its northern third. Varosha, the fenced off section of the Turkish occupied town of Famagusta, is often described as a ‘ghost town’.

UN Security Council resolution 550 (1984) considers any attempts to settle any part of Varosha by people other than its inhabitants as inadmissible and calls for the transfer of this area to the administration of the UN. UN Security Council resolution 789 (1992) also urges that with a view to the implementation of resolution 550 (1984), the area at present under the control of the United Nations Peace-keeping Force in Cyprus be extended to include Varosha.

Turkish Cypriot leader, Ersin Tatar, announced in July 2021 a partial lifting of the military status in Varosha. On October 8, 2020, the Turkish side opened part of the fenced area of Varosha, following an announcement made in Ankara on October 6. Both the UN Secretary-General and the EU expressed concern, while the UN Security Council called for the reversal of this course of action. In his latest report to the Security Council, UN Secretary-General Guterres underlines the importance of adhering fully to UN resolutions, underscoring that the position of the United Nations on this matter “remains unchanged.”

On October 8, 2020, the Turkish side opened part of the fenced area of Varosha, following an announcement made in Ankara on October 6. Both the UN Secretary-General and the EU expressed concern, while the UN Security Council called for the reversal of this course of action.

Source: Cyprus News Agency

Tourist arrivals in Cyprus skyrocketed in March 2022, compared to the same month of 2021 and 2020 when lockdowns and stricter measures to curb the spread of COVID-19 were in place.

According to data released on Thursday by the Statistical Service of Cyprus, the arrivals of tourists reached 128,840 in March 2022 compared to 8,811 in March 2021 and 55,342 tourist arrivals in March 2020.

For the period of January – March 2022, arrivals of tourists totaled 244,705 compared to 17,747 in the corresponding period of 2021, 246,556 during the period of January – March 2020, and to 357,475 during the period of January – March 2019.

Arrivals from the United Kingdom were the main source of tourism for March 2022, with a share of 34.8% (44,829) of total arrivals, followed by Greece with 9.9% (12,810), Israel with 8,6% (11,122), Germany with 8,2% (10,592) and Poland with 7.6% (9,805).

For a percentage of 71.9% of people arriving in Cyprus, the purpose of their trip in March 2022 was holidays, for 16.3% visit to friends and relatives and for 11.8% business. Respectively, in March 2021, 25.2% of visitors came to Cyprus for holidays, 35.2% visited friends or relatives and 39.4% visited Cyprus for business reasons.

Source: Cyprus News Agency