‘We will not give in to blackmail’

By Martin Hellicar

PRESIDENT Clerides yesterday issued an statement promising the government would not give in the “threats and blackmail” concerning the S-300 missiles.

The statement, read out by government spokesman Christos Stylianides during his daily press briefing, comes in the wake of renewed Turkish threats that deployment of the Russian-made ground-to-air missiles could mean war.

“We knew there would be reactions to the missile defence system and we are facing these with responsible handlings without giving in to threats and blackmail,” Clerides stated.

The US and the EU have made their opposition to the £200 million missile deal clear, expressing concern about increased tension on the island. The government remains adamant that the missiles will arrive – but has put back delivery till October.

Presidential advisor Alexis Galanos yesterday threatened to resign if the missiles did not arrive.

During separate visits to the occupied areas last week, Turkey’s President Suleyman Demirel and Turkey’s Prime Minister Mesut Yilmaz both warned that their country would react to the arrival of the missiles.

Stylianides was at pains yesterday to dampen talk of renewed conflict and to reassure the public that the government was on top of things.

“The government is not for tension, we have repeatedly proved this and we will do everything to ensure that there is no tension in the area,” the government spokesman said.

“The President has made it clear that a policy of stability and calm must be the main characteristic of our actions.

“The Cypriot people need not worry as the President and all the government have proved that they can handle the whole issue with responsibility and not get into bad situations that serve only Turkish interests,” Stylianides said.

In another twist to the missile saga, Turkish Foreign Minister Ismail Cem claimed on Sunday that deployment of the S-300s in Cyprus could compromise Nato security in the region.

“Non-Nato members Russia and the Greek Cypriot Administration will directly benefit from information on Turkish and Nato military activity gathered by the (S-300) radar system,” Cem said in Ankara.

“These missiles, while threatening Turkey, the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus and the eastern Mediterranean, at the same time affect the defence of Nato over a wide area,” he said.

The government has always maintained that the missiles are a purely defensive system.

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.