Day: August 17, 2022

Minister of Agriculture, Costas Kadis, said on Wednesday that the government will announce compensatory measures for property owners in the Akamas peninsula, who will be affected by a local plan to protect the environment.

Speaking in Kathikas village, in the Pafos district, Kadis said an assessment of the plan by the Department of Environment should be taken into consideration, but local communities should expect compensatory measures for areas that will no longer be developed, following the announcement of the Akamas masterplan.

Kadis said changes will mainly affect the village of Ineia, and stressed the government’s vision to safeguard Akamas, allowing communities to develop in a sustainable manner.

The Minister said solutions will be provided soon, after the Cabinet discusses the Masterplan for Akamas. On his behalf, Ineia Community Council President, Yangos Tsivikos, said that people have been waiting for solutions in the area of Akamas for 33 years and cannot wait any longer, while noting that local protests will continue.

Source: Cyprus News Agency

The Foreign Ministry expresses its concern over Ankara’s attempts to distort the historical truth in relation to the Turkish invasion against Cyprus in 1974 and the ongoing illegal occupation of the northern territories of the island.

In a press release, the Ministry stresses that the Republic of Cyprus, as an internationally recognised state, a full member of the UN, the EU and other international organisations, will continue to walk the path of international law and international legitimacy, creating conditions of security and prosperity for all the inhabitants of the island, while contributing to the security and stability of the wider region of the Eastern Mediterranean.

It points out that it is widely accepted that recent posts by the Turkish Foreign Ministry on a social media platform unsuccessfully attempt to distort the historical reality by equating the victim of an invasion with the actual perpetrators and executors of it.

The Foreign Ministry says that Turkey, under the pretext of the alleged restoration of the constitutional order, invaded Cyprus in July 1974, “an act by definition illegal and contrary to International Law. Since then it continues to occupy 36% of the territory of the Republic of Cyprus, settling the occupied part of Cyprus and attempting to change the demographic character of the island.”

It notes that Turkey, with hybrid tactics is still trying to islamise the occupied territories, to weaken the secular character of the Turkish Cypriot community and to create conditions of dependence of the Turkish Cypriots on Turkey.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs underlines that the international community has at times taken positions in a clear and legally binding manner on the actual events and the Turkish invasion of Cyprus.

It adds that the UN Security Council has issued a series of resolutions and decisions condemning Turkey’s invasion as an illegal, heinous act and contrary to international law and the UN Charter.

In addition, it continues, the UN Security Council has issued decisions and resolutions condemning the illegal proclamation of independence of the pseudo-state of the so-called “turkish republic of northern Cyprus”, recognizing the Republic of Cyprus as the only state in Cyprus.

“The international community is aware that all that Turkey did was to spread havoc, turn a third of the population of Cyprus to refugees in their own homeland, implement its partitionist plans and consolidate new faits accomplis”, it states, adding that the peak of Turkey’s provocations is its obsession with imposing a two-state solution on Cyprus.

In its press release, the Foreign Ministry says that it will continue the path of rationality and justice, without following “Turkey’s rhetorical insanity.”

“We are making persistent and sincere efforts to create conditions that will allow the resumption of negotiations to reach a comprehensive solution to the Cyprus issue on the basis of the bizonal, bicommunal federation with political equality, as defined in the relevant UN resolutions”.

Efforts, it continues, which Turkey rejects in an intransigent manner insisting on a two-state solution.

“The Republic of Cyprus, as an internationally recognised state, a full member of the UN, the EU and other international organisations, will continue to walk the path of international law and international legitimacy, creating conditions of security and prosperity for all the inhabitants of the island, while contributing and to the security and stability of the wider region of the Eastern Mediterranean”, the Foreign Ministry concludes.

Cyprus has been divided since 1974, when Turkey invaded and occupied its northern third. Repeated rounds of UN-led peace talks have so far failed to yield results. The latest round of negotiations, in July 2017 at the Swiss resort of Crans-Montana ended inconclusively.

Source: Cyprus News Agency

The Cyprus Men’s National volleyball team is in Volda, Norway, to take part in the 5th qualifier’s match with Norway as part of the CEV European Cup.

According to the Cyprus Volleyball Federation, the team has been plagued by many problems, with the coach, Nicos Zalmas, being unable to attend due to COVID-19 infection. Player Sotiris Siapanis has also remained in Cyprus due to illness as well as head of the team Angelos Alexiou, Odisseas Savvides and Antonis Antoniou.

Despite the absences, those who are able to compete will try to secure a victory after Norway’s victory on Saturday, 6th August in Nicosia.

CEV Cup – Men is the second strongest annual club competition in Europe. The participating teams qualify through their national championships and national cups according to the CEV European Cups Ranking of their national federations.

Source: Cyprus News Agency

The number of Cypriot residents who returned from a trip abroad increased in July 2022 by 113.1%, the Cyprus Statistical Service announced on Wednesday. In particular, 134,198 Cypriots traveled abroad compared to 62,961 in July 2021.

The Statistical Service reports that the main countries from which Cypriots returned in July 2022, were Greece with 42.8%, the United Kingdom with 12.2% and Italy with 6.1%.

Source: Cyprus News Agency

The Ministry of Health announced on Wednesday a monkeypox case concerning a 46 year old man, following a molecular laboratory test by the microbiological laboratory of the Nicosia General Hospital.

The 46-year-old man, who has no travel history, has clinical symptoms compatible with monkeypox.

It is added that from the first moment the relevant protocols for the management of suspected and confirmed cases have been implemented.

The man is hospitalized in a very good clinical condition in the specially designed area of the reference hospital (General Hospital of Nicosia) for monitoring and further evaluation of his health condition.

The Epidemiological Surveillance Unit has started tracing and informing the contacts of the man, the press release says.

Source: Cyprus News Agency

Nicosia-based APOEL FC will on Wednesday play against Swedish Djurgården at the Stockholm Arena, for the Europa Conference League play-offs.

The match is scheduled to start at 19.45.

The second phase of the playoffs is scheduled to take place next Tuesday at the GSP Stadium in Nicosia.

On Thursday, three more Cypriot football clubs, Apollon Limassol, AEK Larnaca and Omonia Nicosia will compete in the Europa League play-offs, with the second rounds taking place on August 25.

At 20.00, Apollon will play against Greece’s Olympiacos FC, at the GSP stadium, while AEK will face Ukrainian Dnipro-1 at 21.00, at the Kosicka futbalova arena in Slovakia.

At 21.30, Omonia will face Gent at the KAA Gent Stadium, in Ghent, Belgium.

Source: Cyprus News Agency

The European Investment Bank (EIB) is providing €22 million (above 100 million polish zlotys) in financing to Ryvu Therapeutics, a Polish clinical-stage drug discovery and development company focusing on novel small molecule therapies that address unmet medical needs in oncology. The funding is being provided under the EIB’s venture debt instrument, which is tailored to the specific financing needs of high-growth innovative companies. The European Fund for Strategic Investments, part of the Investment Plan for Europe, is backing this funding with a guarantee.

The EIB’s support will help Ryvu finance its development pipeline of new cancer treatments from discovery through to clinical trials. Ultimately, Ryvu aims to address the clinical limitations of current treatments in oncology and provide patients with access to innovative therapies for haematologic and solid tumours.

Valdis Dombrovskis, Executive Vice-President of the European Commission for an Economy that Works for People, said: “I welcome this investment by the EIB, backed by the Investment Plan for Europe, in Polish company Ryvu Therapeutics. It is great news for Europe’s competitiveness and its location as a research hub for innovations that change and save people’s lives. The additional funding will go towards the discovery, research and development of innovative therapeutics to treat cancer patients. This investment will also support the regional economy and create highly skilled jobs in the process.”

EIB Vice-President Teresa Czerwinska said: “Financing projects within the field of research, development and innovation is one of the EIB’s top priorities and is especially relevant today, as the world suffers from the health crisis caused by the pandemic. Support for innovative companies like Ryvu specialising in advanced biotech research is clearly needed and we are delighted to assist this ambitious company, which has a notable drug discovery and development track record. The EIB’s investment will strengthen Ryvu Therapeutics’ research, development and innovation capacity and competitiveness for the wider social benefit.”

Innovation, research, digital economy and the development of human capital are top priorities for the EIB Group. In 2021, the EIB Group’s overall financing for innovation, digital transformation and human capital projects reached €20.7 billion worldwide, of which €1.5 billion went to Poland (up from €1.2 billion in 2020).

“We are very pleased to receive funding from the European Investment Bank, which plays such an instrumental role in providing financial support to innovation-driven companies like Ryvu that seek to develop new and potentially life-saving medicines,” said Pawel Przewiezlikowski, Chief Executive Officer of Ryvu Therapeutics. “We would like to thank the EIB for their collaboration, as this funding will help Ryvu continue to advance our clinical-stage oncology pipeline, including RVU120 in clinical development for the treatment of hematologic and solid tumours, as well as earlier stage projects.”

Ryvu Therapeutics is already one of the main employers of highly qualified researchers in the biotech field in Poland. With research and development (R&D) activities based in Kraków, the additional investment in Ryvu will contribute to the creation of new highly skilled jobs and encourage economic growth in the region.

Background information

The European Investment Bank (EIB) is the long-term lending institution of the European Union owned by its Member States. It makes long-term finance available for sound investment in order to contribute to EU policy goals. The bank finances projects in four priority areas — infrastructure, innovation, climate and environment, and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). In 2021, the EIB Group provided €6.5 billion in financing to projects in Poland. Part of this financing — equivalent to €1.5 billion — went to projects directly related to innovation, research, digital transformation and the development of human capital.

The European Fund for Strategic Investments

The European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI) is the main pillar of the Investment Plan for Europe. It provides first loss guarantees so that the EIB Group can invest in projects with a higher level of risk. To date, the projects and agreements approved for financing under EFSI have attracted investments totalling €524.3 billion, benefiting more than 1.4 million small and medium-sized businesses. The Investment Plan for Europe has been succeeded by the InvestEU programme, although some previously approved operations can still be signed.

Ryvu Therapeutics

Ryvu Therapeutics is a clinical-stage drug discovery and development company focused on novel small molecule therapies that address emerging targets in oncology. Internally discovered pipeline candidates make use of diverse therapeutic mechanisms driven by emerging knowledge of cancer biology, including small molecules directed at kinase, synthetic lethality and immuno-oncology targets.

Ryvu’s most advanced programmes are RVU120 — a selective CDK8/CDK19 kinase inhibitor with potential for the treatment of haematological malignancies and solid tumours currently in phase I clinical development for the treatment of acute myeloid leukaemia and myelodysplastic syndrome, and phase I/II for the treatment of r/r metastatic or advanced solid tumours — and SEL24 (MEN1703), a dual PIM/FLT3 kinase inhibitor licensed to the Menarini Group, currently in phase II clinical studies in acute myeloid leukaemia. Ryvu Therapeutics has signed ten partnering and licensing deals with global companies, including Merck, Menarini Group, Galapagos and Exelixis.

The company was founded in 2007 and is headquartered in Kraków, Poland. Ryvu is listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange and is a component of the sWIG80 index.

Source: Cyprus News Agency

Arrivals of tourists in Cyprus reached 454,657 in July 2022 compared to 297,308 in July 2021, recording an increase of 52.9%.

According to an announcement by the Statistical Service, tourist arrivals for the period January – July 2022 also showed an increase, compared to the corresponding period last year.

Specifically, for the period January – July 2022, tourist arrivals totaled 1,676,039 compared to 638,292 in the corresponding period of 2021, while 320,589 were arrivals in the period January – July 2020. In the period January – July 2019, the arrivals were 2,181,994.

According to the Statistical Service, arrivals from the United Kingdom were the main source of tourism for the previous month, with a share of 38.2% (173,874) of total arrivals. They are followed by arrivals from Israel with a percentage of 8.4% (38.269), from Poland with 4.7% (21.285), from Germany with 4.7% (21,280), from Sweden with 4.3% (19.732 ) and from Greece with 3.4% (15.450).

Regarding the purpose of the trip for July 2022, the Statistical Service reports that 84.9% of tourists chose Cyprus for vacation, 12.2% visited friends or relatives and 2.8% came to Cyprus for business purposes. For the last July, the respective percentages reached 85.0%, 11.3%, and 3.7%.

Source: Cyprus News Agency

?he number of investment funds increased from 273 in March 2022 to 274 in June 2022, according to data by the Central Bank of Cyprus (CBC).

The CBC released on Wednesday the Investment Funds statistics for the reference month of June 2022.

In a press release, it says that the total assets of the investment funds marginally increased by approximately 0.14% to €8,704.0 million in June 2022.

In March 2022 total assets were €8,692.0 million.

Source: Cyprus News Agency

Artists from Cyprus, Greece, Israel and Armenia compose the cultural mosaic that the “Kypria” International Festival presents this year in a series of events during the months of September and October. Theatre, music, dance are the forms of art on which the festival focuses for 2022. The Artistic Director of “Kypria” for this year is Andis Partzilis.

The premiere for “Kypria” 2022 will take place on September 6 with the dance performance “En Krypto”, which is a collaboration between Cyprus, Greece and Israel. Performances will be held on September 6 in Nicosia and September 8 in Limassol.

On September 8, the musical performance “The Naghash Ensemble – Songs of Exile” follows, which is presented in Nicosia and Larnaca and is under the auspices of the Representative of the Armenian Community in the House of Representatives, Vartkes Mahdessian.

Next on September 10 is the theatrical performance “The New Child”, which “is the story of Daphne, a woman who was born in 1950”. Performances will be held on September 13 in Nicosia and September 14 in Limassol.

Finally, the “Kypria” International Festival presents the theatre and dance performance “My room is not a stage”, which is a Cypriot and Greek production about “a Cypriot dancer [who] stays locked in her apartment in Poland, due to the pandemic.”

Besides, as Andis Partzilis mentions on the festival’s official website, “its aim is to present performing arts producers who ensure a high artistic result, the presentation of producers who project universal values and reflection on social and political phenomena of our time from a timeless approach”.

Source: Cyprus News Agency