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1111. Athens sees Ankara games ahead of summit

Not only did Turkey continue to ignore Athens’ proposals for the next round of exploratory contacts between the two countries on Monday, its Defense Ministry once again revisited the issue of demilitarization of the Greek islands of the eastern Aegean, going as far as denouncing the presence of Greek warships at Kastellorizo....

1112. Two states in Cyprus? Why not, then, a unitary one?

An informal summit on Cyprus is scheduled to take place in Geneva in late April, coming at a time when Greek-Turkish relations are anything but good and tensions are high in the broader region. The aim of the meeting, according to the United Nations, “will be to determine whether common ground exists for the parties to negotiate a lasting solution to the Cyprus problem within a foreseeable horizon.”...

1113. Peter Piot: Vaccination passports a one-way street

Professor Peter Piot, advisor to the Commission President, speaks to ‘K’...

1114. EU broaches COVID passport subject

The European Commission will present a proposal in March on creating an EU-wide digital vaccination passport, Commission president Ursula von der Leyen said on Monday...

1115. Covid cases popping up at high schools

A handful of coronavirus cases have been detected at high schools in Nicosia and Paphos, as the government is busy mulling over proposals for a further easing of measures that include the return of all educational levels to classrooms....

1116. Christodoulides, Dendias hold talks in Athens

Cypriot Foreign Minister Nikos Christodoulides met with his Greek counterpart in Athens on Friday on the sidelines of the Friendship Forum held Thursday in what was seen as an effort by Greece to expand its network of allies from the Mediterranean to the Gulf....

1117. Oktay: Forget any bargaining over Varosha

1118. Nikos Kotzias in Kathimerini: Foreign policy and exploratory talks

Greece’s exploratory talks with Turkey are not a dialogue for the sake of dialogue. They are a structured debate in which both sides invest for a series of achievements. Greece’s target, as far as exploratory talks are concerned, has always been:...

1119. Ferry link hopes end with a whimper

Shipping transport companies remained unconvinced over Cyprus’ effort to revive and subsidize a ferry link with Greece, with the government going back to the drawing board after no bidders came forward by Friday’s deadline...

1120. Cabinet okays bill for establishment of Dep. Ministry of Social Welfare

The Council of Ministers on Wednesday approved a bill for the establishment of a Deputy Ministry of Social Welfare in Cyprus, the deputy government spokesperson Panayiotis Sentonas said in a written statement on Wednesday....

1121. Officials want young people settle in Strovilia

Dherynia officials are seeking ways to have young people populate abandoned homes in Strovilia, on British Base soil, despite challenges stemming from restrictions that were somewhat eased last year...

1122. Health Ministry announces one death, 122 new cases

The Health Ministry on Wednesday announced one coronavirus fatality and 122 new cases, raising the death toll to 179 and total cases detected so far to 29,758....

1123. Slow vaccine rollout affecting Cyprus strategy, President tells EU leaders

President Nicos Anastasiades briefed EU leaders in a videoconference on Thursday evening on the problems Cyprus is facing due to the slow rollout of coronavirus vaccines mainly brought about by the production delays of pharmaceutical companies supplying jabs for the EU....

1124. Greek MPs approve extension of Ionian Sea territorial waters

With 284 votes in favor and 16 “present,” lawmakers approved legislation on Wednesday to extend Greece’s territorial waters along its western coastline from six to 12 nautical miles....

1125. Paphos wipes out Ottoman street name

The city council in Paphos has voted to rename Talaat Pasha street, after examining a request representing interests within the Armenian community...

1126. Anastasiades invites National Council to informal Cyprob summit

President Anastasiades briefed the National Council on Thursday on the latest developments in the Cyprus Problem, and extended an invitation to Council members to accompany him on the informal meeting the UN is organising, that is expected to take place in New York in late February or early May....

1127. Cyprus aiming for full absorption of EU funds

Finance Minister Constantinos Petrides said Cyprus wants to achieve an absorption of 100% of the maximum of €968 million it could receive from the European structural and investment funds, but this requires that Cyprus invests in projects amounting to €1.8 billion....

1128. Government buys time on new COVID measures

The health, finance, and labour ministers of the Republic of Cyprus have been tasked to reconcile a number of issues before a Cabinet meeting on Friday, essentially stalling the announcement of new COVID measures which was expected on Thursday...

1129. Cabinet agrees on plastic bag ban at sales points

The Cabinet on Tuesday agreed on a blanket ban on thin plastic bags at points of sale, with the decision to come into force once passed by the House plenum....

1130. Cabinet to decide on holiday leniency

With Christmas day and the New Year approaching, businesses and the public are growing increasingly eager to see whether restriction measures in place will be loosened, but recent figures and the climbing death toll point to any relaxation being a highly unlikely scenario...

1131. Ankara tries to open Jerusalem channel

In a bid to create rifts in Israel’s alliances with Greece and Cyprus, Turkey is reportedly trying to open channels with Tel Aviv through proposals officially submitted by retired rear admiral Cihat Yayci, architect of Ankara’s expansionist Blue Homeland doctrine and its maritime borders pact with Libya. ...

1132. Nicosia cops detain six women in brothel raid

Six sex workers were detained Friday during a police raid in Nicosia, with officers arresting one of them on prostitution-related charges...

1133. AstraZeneca hitches ride with Russia's Sputnik in vaccine race

AstraZeneca will start clinical trials to test a combination of its experimental Covid-19 vaccine with Russia's Sputnik V shot aimed at boosting the efficacy of the British drugmaker's vaccine, Russia's sovereign wealth fund said on Friday....

1134. Turkey shrugs off effect of sanctions as EUCO looms

The intense consultations between European Union member-states on the bloc’s response to Turkish aggression in recent months are expected to continue until the 11th hour before the start of Thursday’s crucial leaders summit. ...

1135. Cyprus struggles to regulate lobbying

Debate on a legislation proposal that would regulate lobbying in the Republic of Cyprus will continue next year, when parliamentary elections will be in full swing, after the justice ministry introduced amendments to reconcile transparency rules with realities of politicking on the island...

1136. President says anti-corruption measures to be announced by year's end

The new anti-corruption measures will be announced to the public before the end of the year, President Nicos Anastasiades said Wednesday, noting that the delay is due to the government’s efforts to take into account the suggestions of all stakeholders....

1137. Lute gets Cypriot nod for five-party talks

UN special envoy Jane Holl Lute met separately on Tuesday with the two Cypriot leaders, who said they were open to a possible five-party informal meeting but expressed diametrically opposite views on solving the Cyprus Problem...

1138. New court culture coming to Cyprus

The president of the Cyprus Bar Association says justice reform is in the air in the Republic of Cyprus, after proposed rules on Civil Law Procedure were submitted on Thursday to the Supreme Court in hopes to introduce a new court culture on the island...

1139. Bishop apologises over reporter incident

Bishop Nikiforos of Kykkos, who told a reporter to “shut up” on Wednesday as cameras were rolling, has issued an apology, saying he regretted his behaviour, with the incident revealing tensions remain high over the Ukrainian issue...

1140. Health Ministry to buy additional 400,000 rapid antigen tests

The Council of Ministers has approved a proposal tabled by the Minister of Health Constantinos Ioannou for the purchase of an additional 400,000 rapid antigen tests to bolster efforts toward monitoring the island’s epidemiological situation and limiting the spread of coronavirus. ...