Front Page Headlines
Three weeks for a start and we’ll see in February…
New necessary adventure so health system can withstand being overburdened. If you forgot 8998 from last March, it returns to our daily lives until the end of the month. Right to send only two SMS per day. All services and businesses except for essential ones shut down. Teleworking in the public sector, limited number of workers in private sector. Distance learning in elementary schools, gymnasiums and lyceums. Education Ministry announced postponement of term exams.
- Meeting at Presidential Palace: Revised budget “inoculated” by parties
- Sunday and Monday: Interview for “P”: President Anastasiades speaks about all
- Cyprus Problem: Tactical moves ahead of Lute (visit)
Quarantine and… God help us
Spread does not give hope for end of three weeks – Measures give a breather to hospitals. Yesterday we had a record of patients at intensive care units and a record of intubated.
- Almost everything stops for three weeks – 34 patients in ICUs, 30 on breathing assistance – 196 persons hospitalised – 52 in critical condition – One in five reported as contact found positive for coronavirus
- With additional appropriations of 90 million euro: Revised budget now to be voted with majority
- New (police) inquiry on Morphou Bishop begins – Over procession and blessing of waters at Karkotis rivers during Epiphany celebration – With an understanding between the Attorney General and the Chief of Police
- Tatar puts preconditions on the table
We pay for their incompetence dearly
Mishandling made a new lockdown a necessity. Limits on physical presence of workers. We return again to SMS and movements with documents.
- Critical decisions on Cyprus Problem
- Budget vote to be held on January 18… EDEK puts pressure over GeSY
‘We were at the red line’
Minister says all other options were exhausted, lockdown was the only thing left.
- Cyprus: President briefs party leaders on revised budget
Patience until May
Health Minister announced new lockdown. The aim is to vaccinate 20% to see better future. One death and 466 new cases yesterday. Students will not return to their desks. 32 questions-answers: Everything you need to know about the new lockdown. 527 citizens aged over 80 vaccinated yesterday.
- Lute to meet Anastasiades-Tatar on Monday: Countdown to five-party meeting begins – Turkish intransigence and promotion of two states intensifies – Cavusoglu: It would be a waste of time to negotiate for a federation.
- Crans Montana: Andros remembered Victoras’ call 3.5 years later
- Lefkoniko: Shock: 14-year-old killed his parents and committed suicide because of video game
- In Parliament on January 18: Optimism that budget will be approved
Main News
Government decides on new lockdown until end of January
Alithia, Cyprus Mail, Haravgi, Phileleftheros, Politis
Internal Security
OVERVIEW
The government announced on Friday that Cyprus would enter a second lockdown in the government-controlled areas starting Sunday due to the persistence of coronavirus infections, the dailies report. The new lockdown includes a night time curfew and citizens will be once again required to send a text every time they need to exit their home, which they will be allowed to do twice a day.
Health Minister Constantinos Ioannou said in a press conference that many of the measures that had been imposed did not pay off. The lockdown will be in effect until January 31. He also said that the government expects that when vaccinations reach 20% of the total population then hospitalisations can be reduced by 80%. This amounts to 150,000 vaccinations.
Meanwhile, the dailies report that 527 citizens belonging in the age group above 80 years old received the first dose of the coronavirus vaccine. The Ministry of Health announced that citizens responded rapidly to the call to register for vaccination and that the process progressed without problems during its first day.
The vaccinations were carried out in five special vaccination centres at the Latsia Health Centre, the Nicosia old General Hospital, the Limassol old General Hospital, the Larnaca old General Hospital and the Paphos General Hospital. The ministry announced that vaccination centres will also be operating at the Troodos Hospital and the Famagusta General Hospital starting on Monday.
Politis reports that only one in three health workers at the Paphos General Hospital accepted to be vaccinated, as many are waiting to see whether the vaccine has side effects, while others, reportedly, refuse to be vaccinated.
According to the ministry, about 33,000 citizens over 80 years of age are expected to be vaccinated during the first phase of the country’s vaccination programme. Cyprus is expected to receive about 6,800 doses of the Pfizer vaccine per week, and Moderna’s vaccines are expected to be added to that number beginning Monday. After persons over 80 are vaccinated, the government will begin vaccinating people over 75.
Phileleftheros reports that the number of coronavirus hospitalised on breathing assistance in the government-controlled areas has reached 30, which is a new record that creates concerns.
Lute to see leaders on Monday in preparation of 5+1 meeting
Alithia, Haravgi, Phileleftheros, Politis
Negotiations Process
OVERVIEW
UNSG envoy Jane Holl Lute will aim to get the two sides committed to take part in an informal 5+1 (two communities, three guarantors plus UN) meeting without preconditions and without radical changes in the solution model during her meetings with President Anastasiades and T/C leader Ersin Tatar on Monday, the dailies report.
Lute will meet President Anastasiades at 10:30 on Monday, and will then meet the T/C leader at 14:30.
Haravgi reports that President Anastasiades sent a letter to UNSG Antonio Guterres regarding his positions and proposals. According to the newspaper, deputy government spokesperson Panagiotis Sentonas told the Cyprus News Agency that the letter includes a series of proposals that will contribute to the creation of a constructive climate.
Politis points out that the UN will focus on whether the two sides have the political will to find common ground, and will not tolerate another process without end in which the sides would focus on tactics.
Politis reports that for many in the T/C community, Tatar’s insistence on a two-state solution is a tactical move by the T/C leader. The same sources point out that the key to the success of the negotiations is the G/C side’s stance regarding natural gas.
According to Politis, Tatar told YeniDuzen that the aim is for the 5+1 meeting to take place in February in Switzerland. He repeated that the next steps in the process should be a discussion on the solution model, territory, property and security, while adding that the T/C side wants to include the natural gas issue at some stage in the process.
In a statement, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu also said that at this stage the sides should define exactly what they are going to negotiate on. He added that if the sides are to continue negotiating on a federation for another 52 years there is not going to be a solution.
Cavusoglu also repeated that the two-state solution is not only Turkey’s idea, but that President Anastasiades was the first to propose it. He added that Anastasiades shared his thoughts with others because the G/Cs want to share nothing with the T/Cs.
Politis also reports that Turkish Vice President Fuat Oktay is expected to visit the north soon, citing a statement by T/C “prime minister” Ersan Saner.
Haravgi also reports that on Friday, Commission spokesperson Eric Mamer announced that European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and High Representative Josep Borrell were due to have a teleconference with Turkish President Tayip Erdogan on Saturday. According to Mamer, the teleconference is part of the preparation for a joint report by the Commission and the European External Action Service on Turkey, ahead of the European Council which will deal with EU-Turkey relations in March.
Politis also advertises a two-part interview with President Anastasiades covering all issues on the news agenda. According to a short story, the first part to be published on Sunday focuses on the passports scandal and the coronavirus pandemic, while the second part to be published on Monday focuses on the Cyprus Problem and the government’s relations with the Auditor General.
In another development, US ambassador in Cyprus Judith Garber wrote on Twitter that she is certain that US-Cyprus relations will continue developing under the incoming Biden presidency. Garber noted that Joe Biden visited Cyprus when he was Vice President and knows the island well. According to Phileleftheros, President Anastasiades congratulated Biden on the confirmation of his election by Congress with a post on Twitter.
KEY ACTORS
Tatar
>> Next steps in process should be discussion on solution model, territory, property, security, as well as natural gas at a later stage.
Cavusoglu (Turkey)
>> The sides should define what they are going to negotiate about.
>> Anastasiades was the first to propose a two-state solution, this was not only Turkey’s idea.
Kyprianou: President was ready to leave Crans Montana before dinner
Alithia, Haravgi
Negotiations Process
OVERVIEW
AKEL secretary general Andros Kyprianou said in an interview on CyBC that party leaders were told to get ready to leave Crans Montana before the final dinner of the conference had begun, Alithia reports.
Kyprianou said that then spokesperson Victoras Papadopoulos called political party leaders who were also in Switzerland to inform them that the G/C side would leave the next day and that they should pack their bags.
Kyprianou said that on the final day of the conference in 2017, after Anastasiades had submitted his proposals, he had tweeted that this was a move in the right direction. Later they learned from then Greek Foreign Minister Nicos Kotzias that Turkey had also submitted a proposal. The AKEL leader pointed out that all of this happened before the dinner, and that the conference was decided during that dinner and not before.
According to Kyprianou, the President’s team called the parties at 5pm to inform them that they would leave the next day, before the dinner had begun. Kyprianou clarified when asked that the person who had called party leaders was Victoras Papadopoulos.
Papadopoulos denied in a tweet that this had happened, pointing out that it was not up to him to inform party leaders. He also said that on that night, the Turkish side had leaked fake news that the G/C side was ready to leave in the morning. Papadopoulos tweeted a picture he had tweeted in 2017 of the UN’s scheduling board with the departure times of all parties.
Haravgi reports that opposition leader Kyprianou was due to publicise the party’s proposals on the Cyprus Problem which had been submitted to the President a few weeks before. The newspaper also writes that the President had sent the letter with the G/C side’s CBM proposals to UNSG Guterres without first consulting with the political parties.