Day: March 16, 2023

The Fire Department carried out a fire extinguishing exercise at the LAFS petroleum facilities at Larnaka International Airport. The scenario provided for a leak in the supply pipeline of liquid fuels on a tanker truck, which could potentially lead to explosion and injuries. In statements, Fire Service spokesperson, Andreas Kettis, said that as part of its operational readiness, the Department “conducted an exercise today at the liquid fuel facilities of the LAFS company, which is responsible for supplying liquid fuels to aircraft’, “The company is of high danger classification due to the storage of liquid fuels with very low flash points,” he added. Kettis said “these specific exercises are very important and are currently being conducted intensively in high-risk graded facilities before the summer period’. “The goal is to test the readiness of the facility’s employees, the systems they possess, both for cooling and fire extinguishing of the installations, to test the specialized equipment available to the Fire Service for such incidents, the company’s action plans, both internal and external, and those of the Fire Service, and where there are deficiencies, to be supplemented,” he noted. The exercise, he added, was a success.

Source: Cyprus News Agency

The new leadership in Cyprus served as a fitting moment for the Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs, Rosemary di Carlo,’s visit to Cyprus, according to UN Secretary-General Spokesperson Stephane Dujarric. He told Wednesday’s press briefing DiCarlo ‘met Greek Cypriot leader Nikos Christodoulides and Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar. During those detailed discussions she reiterated the UN’s continued commitment to peace on the island’. Di Carlo, he added, ‘is continuing her visit with meetings with civil society, including women and youth groups’. Asked if she intents to visit the Turkey, Greece or London – the guarantor countries – after she completes her visit in Cyprus, Dujarric said the only travel he is aware of is to Cyprus and back. To a question if there is a particular window of opportunity or are things are looking more hopeful with the diplomacy for DiCarlo’s visit, the UNSG’s Spokesperson said ‘there is new leadership on the Greek Cypriot side. So, this was an opportune moment to go’. 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

UK Minister for Europe Leo Docherty has reaffirmed the British government’s support for the UN-led process towards a settlement to the long-standing Cyprus issue. He was responding to a written question by Conservative MP Giles Watling on what assessment the Foreign Office has made of the role of the UK ‘in helping to preserve peace in Cyprus’. ‘We remain committed to supporting UN efforts to reach a just and lasting Cyprus settlement within the UN parameters,’ said Docherty. He referenced the relevant reassurance given by the UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly to his then counterpart Ioannis Kasoulides in November. The minister added: ‘The UK engages with all parties on this and contributes to the settlement process in a number of ways, including through our deployment of military personnel to UN Peacekeeping Forces in Cyprus. In January we led the drafting of the UN Security Council resolution to renew the mandate of the Peacekeeping Force, which was unanimously adopted by the UNSC, maintaining the Council’s longstanding unity on Cyprus.’

Source: Cyprus News Agency

In 2021, maritime transport accounted for more than two-thirds (68%, 5 135 billion tonne-km; tkm) of the EU’s freight transport, the lowest share recorded in the past decade according to data released by Eurostat, the statistical service of the EU. Road transport accounted for a quarter (25%, 1 863 billion tkm), while rail (5%, 410 billion tkm), inland waterway (2%, 136 billion tkm) and air (0.2%, 15 billion tkm) transport each accounted for small shares of freight transport. A tonne-kilometre, abbreviated as tkm, is a unit of measure of freight transport which represents the transport of one tonne of goods by a given transport mode (road, rail, air, sea, inland waterways, pipeline etc.) over a distance of one kilometre. Maritime freight transport dominated in Cyprus accounting for 97.8% in 2021. Road and air transport follow with minimal shares of 2.1% and 0.1%. Maritime transport is the main transport mode for freight in Cyprus throughout at least the past decade. The lowest share recorded during this period was 96% in 2011 and the highest was 98% in 2015, while road transport had their peak so far in 2011 (3.5%) and their lowest point in 2015 (1.8%). Air transport has had a low share over the past ten years, staying at 0.1%. In the EU, the share of maritime transport decreased slightly compared with 2020 (-1 percentage point; pp). It decreased more significantly compared with the year recording the highest share in the last decade, which was 2012 (-2 pp). Meanwhile, the share of road transport in 2021 reached the highest share recorded in the past decade. It increased slightly compared with 2020 (+1 pp) and increased more significantly compared with the year recording the lowest share in the last decade, which was 2012 (+3 pp). The share of rail transport also slightly increased in 2021 compared with 2020 (+0.2 pp) but remained lower compared with the year recording the highest share in the last decade, which was 2011 (-1 pp). Inland waterway transport has remained stable since 2018, but slightly lower than the peak recorded in 2013 (-1 pp). Air had the smallest share in freight transport and remained at 0.2% in the last decade. Maritime was the main mode of freight transport for 15 EU members (out of 22 with a coastline) in 2021 and accounted for more than 70% of freight transport in 10 countries. Meanwhile, road transport was the main mode of freight transport for 10 EU members and accounted for more than 70% in three countries: Luxembourg (84%), Czechia (77%) and Poland (70%). Rail freight transport was the main mode for only one country: Lithuania (53%).

Source: Cyprus News Agency

The implementation course of the Technical Support Instrument was the focus of a meeting held in Nicosia between Minister of Finance Makis Keravnos with Mario Nava, Director General of the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Structural Reform Support. According to a press release from the Ministry, the main topic of discussion was the course of implementation of the Technical Support Instrument provided to the Republic of Cyprus both for the implementation of actions as well as for the acceleration and implementation of reforms to modernize key sectors of the economy thus contributing to the upgrading of the standard of living and life quality of citizens. It is added that their implementation is expected to contribute to a great extent to the creation of new jobs and to the development of the economy in general. They also exchanged views in relation to actions that could be taken to contribute to building trust between Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots within the framework of the Aid Program for the Turkish Cypriot Community, given the limitations that such an effort may have, the press release concludes.

Source: Cyprus News Agency

Cyprus Foreign Minister, Constantinos Kombos, met on Thursday with Irish Minister of State for Law Reform at the Department of Justice James Browne, who is visiting Cyprus on the occasion of St Patrick’s Day. The Foreign Ministry said in a post on its Twitter account that the meeting offered an opportunity to highlight the high level of co-operation and understanding between Cyprus and Ireland, and to thank Ireland for their continuous participation in the UN peacekeeping force in Cyprus (UNFICYP) since 1964.

Source: Cyprus News Agency

The Embassy of the Syrian Arab Republic in Nicosia expresses its gratitude to the Republic of Cyprus for its help to Syria, that was affected by an earthquake on 6th February 2023. In a press release, the Embassy states that it ”would like to thank the Government and people of the Republic of Cyprus (political, religious, popular and economic institutions), expressing its gratitude and appreciation to the People of Cyprus for their broad and prompt response to their Syrian friends who were affected by the devastating earthquake that struck a number of cities in Syria on 6th February 2023, reflecting the deeply-rooted relations between the two friendly peoples”.

Source: Cyprus News Agency

UN Under-Secretary-General Rosemary DiCarlo underlined on Thursday the importance of the work of the bicommunal technical committees in Cyprus, speaking at a reception hosted, during her visit on the island, for the Co-Chairs of the committees, whom she assured of the UN’s strong commitment to continue supporting their important work. DiCarlo noted that the technical committees have been an avenue for the sides to interact on issues of mutual concern as well as issues that affect the daily lives of Cypriots, including on the environment, gender equality health, cultural heritage, economy and trade. She also emphasized that their efforts continue to contribute to building trust between the two sides especially in the current political climate. The high-ranking UN official highlighted in her address the uniqueness of the framework of the technical committees in Cyprus. She also noted that other UN political missions working on protracted conflicts in the world often wish to replicate this tool and hope to have a similar mechanism to have parties to a conflict working together to tackle shared challenges for the benefit of all. DiCarlo recalled that the agreement for the establishment of the technical committees was brokered in 2006 by the then UN Under- Secretary -General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs, Ibrahim Gambari, between the Greek Cypriot leader, Tassos Papadopoulos and the Turkish Cypriot leader, Mehmet Ali Talat, noting that these committees carry therefore a special meaning for the UN Department for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs. Moreover, she told the Co-Chairs of the committees that the longevity enjoyed so far by the committees has been made possible by their personal commitment to the work of the committees. DiCarlo also referred to UN Security Council resolution 2674 by which the Security Council encouraged the leaders to reinvigorate their efforts to provide the necessary support and overall guidance to free the Technical Committees from political obstructions in their work and enable them to function effectively in coordination and cooperation on matters which have island-wide implications. She expressed hope that with the launch of the second phase of the EU funding facility, they would continue to utilize funding to carry out initiatives and projects for the benefit of all Cypriots. 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

Nothing is comparable with Cyprus’ 2013 financial crisis, Hellenic Bank’s Chief Executive Officer Oliver Gatzke has said, adding the bank’s management team is monitoring the situation on a daily basis. Speaking to the press over the bank’s annual results, Gatzke said the bank has received questions by its regulator, the EU Single Supervisory Mechanism, stating there is no reason to worry. His comments came in the mid of the financial turmoil sparked by the collapse of two regional banks in the US and the turbulence in Credit Suisse. ‘Look at the banks today and ten years ago, there is a lot of capital, there is a lot of liquidity and when you look at Hellenic Bank you will see there is even more capital and even more liquidity,’ he said. Responding to a question, the German banker said supervision and regulation was beneficial. ‘The banking system in Cyprus has improved significantly and this was because of better regulation. At the end of the day banks are safer,’ he said. Gatzke highlighted the very different business model observed by Hellenic Bank compared with the US Silicon Valley Bank which collapsed from a run from its uninsured depositors (over $250,000) namely start-ups and venture capitalists. Hellenic Bank has mainly local retail deposits with the majority being insured deposits (up to pound 100,000) considered as more stable. The situation, he added, is not comparable with 2013 when a large part of deposits in the Cyprus banking system came from abroad. Gatzke also pointed out that the bank has excess liquidity of pound 6 billion held in Central Banks, which is are highly liquid. Moreover, he noted that the bank’s Liquidity Coverage Ratio (LCR) stood at 440% compared with the supervisory requirement of 100%. We have the highest or the second highest LCR in the universe of the banks supervised by the ECB, he said. Gatzke also said that the bank’s bond portfolio, totalling pound 4.2 billion in end-2022, is invested in highly rated bonds, in Cyprus Government Bonds, as well as high-quality covered bonds with an average maturity of three years. Amid the rising interest rates, Gatzke said that is important to maintain high credit standards, noting new lending is expected to slow down. He noted that, as part of its loan origination criteria, the bank accepts higher loan instalments without increased own contributions by borrowers, households and businesses alike. Gatzke said that the majority of the bank’s loans are associated with the local base rate rather than Euribor which is more linked with the ECB’s rate hikes. Referring to deposit rate, the German banker said that the bank will ‘slowly- slowly’ start raising rates starting with fixed term deposits. Furthermore, Gatzke said that the bank is in discussions with the regulator, over dividend distribution in 2024 for the year of 2023. Noting that a decision by the regulator (SSM) is expected by the end of the year or early next year, Gatzke noted that ‘seeing our Key Performance Indicators, we believe we can pay dividend and it is time to start paying dividend at some point in time.’

Source: Cyprus News Agency