GCC Press Review 10 Nov 2021

Front Page Headlines

Politis

Spectators to the same show with government-Odysseas

Presidential Palace: The laws are interpreted by the Attorney General not the Auditor General

  • Natural gas: Covid-19 overturned arrival plans
  • National Guard: Soldiers asking for overtime pay
  • N. Papadopoulos: We should pay migrants to leave

Phileleftheros

Alarm for migrants

Eight ministers, Police chiefs, KYP, National Guard, at the Presidential Palace with a ‘top secret’ agenda.

  • Pournara has overflowed, Authorities raising their hands in the air: Devastating pictures from adverse conditions
  • Erdogan wants to put drills everywhere
  • They’re sending refugees to the ‘compensation commission’
  • They’re pressuring the EU to obstruct the EastMed and other pipelines

Haravgi

The government is even asking for an applause for the illegal permanent appointments!

Volley fire for getting the President’s niece and three DISY employees settled

  • In the first half of 2023, if possible, electricity production with natural gas

Cyprus Mail

Dairy U-turn over price rise for milk

No increase though new warning cost of basic goods set to rise in near future

  • Electricity supply from natural gas is projected to begin from 2023

Alithia

Marathon to put out the fires

Police. The side effects from the cancellation of the appointment of 75 policemen and 25 firemen increasing dangerously.

  • Erdogan: We will extract whatever exists in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea
  • Natural gas in the first half of 2023
  • Auditor General for the appointment of the ‘4’: He knew from 2013, he chose to speak now
  • Cyprus: The birth rate at 1.3%. For every three births by GC parents, there is one birth by migrants

Main News

Erdogan: Turkey to extract all findings in Mediterranean, Black Sea

Alithia, Haravgi, Phileleftheros
Energy

OVERVIEW

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Turkey will increase the number of drill ships in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea, claiming that whatever is found will be extracted, the dailies report.

Erdogan said Turkey is completely dependent on foreign countries as regards energy, adding that high-funded studies conducted so far have not given rise to positive results. He said Turkey’s fleet, which includes three drill ships and two seismic research vessels, have conducted 14 deep water drills since 2018, while seismic research conducted in the Mediterranean and Black Sea was boosted by six to seven times.

He added that a finding of 540 billion cubic metres has taken Turkey to another level, and one of the reasons behind the ugly attacks on Turkey is due to its efforts to offer its own resources to its nation. Erdogan stressed that whether others like it or not, Turkey will increase the number of drill ships and its research activity, and whatever is found in the Black Sea and the Mediterranean will be extracted.

Erdogan also said that Turkey will swiftly start preparations for its second and third nuclear power plants, which will follow the country’s first nuclear power plant, Akkuyu, which he said is expected to be operational by 2023.

The dailies also report citing Turkish media that Turkey has purchased a fourth drill ship, which was described as ‘the best in the world’. The vessel is a seventh-generation deep sea drilling ship called ‘West Cobalt’ that has been purchased from a North Korean company.


Electricity from natural gas expected from 2023

Alithia, Cyprus Mail, Haravgi, Phileleftheros, Politis
Energy

OVERVIEW

Electricity production from natural gas can be expected during the first half of 2023, the Chairman of the public natural gas company Symeon Kassianides said Tuesday, the dailies report.

Kassianides said no extra cost to the €300 million project was expected because of the fallout of the coronavirus pandemic. Haravgi reports that the pandemic however led to a renewed delay in the project which was expected to unfold from September 2022. The paper writes that this is the seventh attempt that Cyprus is making to acquire natural gas as an interim solution, before the utilisation of Cypriot natural gas.

Politis reports that the renewed delay will constitute additional costs for consumers.

Kassianides said the project would have many benefits, noting that the cost of failing to implement it would be high.

Carbon emissions tax used to be $10 per tonne five years ago, he said, and €63 currently. It is possible that it may reach €120, he added. So, he said, if we continued to burn crude, what we pay on emissions today would have doubled.


2-state solution lacks international support, says UK MP

Phileleftheros
Negotiations Process

OVERVIEW

The British Labour Party’s Shadow Foreign Minister Catherine West reiterated her party’s support for a Cyprus settlement in line with UN Security Council (UNSC) resolutions calling for a bizonal, bicommunal federation (BBF), Phileleftheros reports.

West had participated in a debate in Westminster Hall last week on human rights in Turkey, prompted mainly by prosecutions against politicians of Kurdish descent.

During the debate, Scottish National Party’s MP Alyn Smith made reference to the ongoing Turkish occupation of the northern part of Cyprus. West agreed with the concerns raised by her colleague.

She said she remains very concerned about developments in the debate around the future in Cyprus, adding that the Labour Party is very committed to the UN resolutions which call for a BBF. West also said that there is no serious support at the international level for a two-state solution, noting that there may be a proposal by the Turkish side, but the Labour view is that the two parties must be supported to come up with a way of bringing forward the BBF which is the reunification principle outlined for years now by the UN.

The paper adds that West also stressed that it is very important that we don’t move away from the UN resolutions. She also said that it is a very sensitive issue, noting that the UK still has military forces in Cyprus, and the UN is still in Cyprus, adding that it’s important to not change the game just become some time has passed.


Cyprob among topics discussed between Cyprus, Georgia Presidents

Alithia, Cyprus Mail, Haravgi, Phileleftheros
Regional/International Relations

OVERVIEW

Georgia looks forward to Cyprus’ support for its European aspirations and recognises that it can learn from Cyprus, which followed the same path until it joined the bloc, President Salome Zourabichvili said on Tuesday following a meeting in Nicosia with President Nicos Anastasiades, the dailies report.

She noted the symbolism of the visit, the first official visit by a Georgian President to the island, following the first ever visit of a Cypriot President to Georgia in 2019.

The dailies report that on the agenda of the talks were the Cyprus issue, Georgia’s European aspirations, the Eastern Mediterranean, the situation in the Caucasus, bilateral relations, the pandemic and fighting corruption.

In his statement, Anastasiades said that Zourabichvilli’s visit to the island is a return of the warm hospitality that he and his delegation received in Georgia in 2019. He said the reciprocal visits are important milestones in the efforts to strengthen the cooperation of the two countries at bilateral and multilateral level.

He referred to the long-standing and excellent relationship between the two countries and the historical, cultural and religious ties, emphasising that the Georgian community is one of the oldest Orthodox communities on the island. The president said that Cyprus highly appreciates the community’s activity and presence on the island and this is why it granted land in Gialia village for the construction of a monastery where a Georgian church stood many centuries ago.

According to the President, during the talks they discussed developments in the Caucasus and Nagorno-Karabakh and security issues in the Black Sea, the situation in the Eastern Mediterranean due to recent developments in Iraq, elections in Libya and instability in Lebanon and Syria.

Georgia-EU relations were also on the agenda in view of the Eastern Partnership meeting scheduled for December, with Cyprus having given support for efforts to deepen Brussels-Tbilisi relations.

The President expressed Nicosia’s deep appreciation for Georgia’s stance on the Cyprus issue and stressed that Cyprus adheres to the same principles regarding the national problem of Georgia.

The Georgian President referred to the common history of the two countries and their common problems and the great appreciation of the people of Georgia for the concession of land for the construction of the monastery. She said that this is highly valued because Georgians are used to have land taken away from them, not granting them land.

She also expressed her country’s appreciation for Cyprus’ support for Georgia’s sovereign and territorial integrity and for its accession to the EU, saying that Georgia always supports Cyprus’ territorial integrity and all UN agreements.

She went on to say that the two countries enjoy almost 30 years of diplomatic relations and need to take the next step to raise them even higher in many areas.

Regarding her country’s accession to the EU, she said that she looks forward to further support from Nicosia, saying that the EU presence in Georgia and its participation in the Caucasus issues and what is happening there is necessary. Zourabichvili said it is important to strengthen bilateral relations in the cultural sector as well, and said that Georgian cultural days should be held in Cyprus and Cyprus days in Georgia on the occasion of 30 years of diplomatic relations next year.


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