Putin denies any state interest in Cyprus gas

CYPRUS was part of wider regional discussions in Turkey on Monday during the visit to Ankara by Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.

According to Turkish media, Putin arrived in Ankara with a large delegation, including 10 ministers, for trade discussions including a Turkish demand for a price reduction on its natural gas supply from Moscow. The two countries are also aiming to increase their two-way trade volume from the current $33 billion to $100 billion by 2020.
Lavrov met his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu before the fifth session of the High Level Cooperation Council meeting where they discussed the trade deals expected to be signed.

On regional issues, they discussed Syria, Iraq, Ukraine and Cyprus.

Lavrov said Moscow “would keep a positive attitude for uninterrupted negotiations on the Cyprus issue”, Turkish media reported. The foreign minister also appeared to be in favour of negotiations on the Cyprus problem recommencing as soon as possible, according to the Turkish press.

Putin also made a comment about Cyprus ahead of the visit when he denied that Russia was involved in any gas projects in and around Cyprus.

“I don’t know who said what about the issue. But I know that neither the Russian state nor the energy ministry are involved in any gas projects in Cyprus. It is up to private companies to deal with the process, if there is one. They need to know that it will be their own responsibility to deal with any crisis and risks there,” he said.

 

The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.