Russian ambassador Murat Zyazikov
Cyprus is not large in size, but due largely to its geographical location, this state is an important participant in many political and economic strategies implemented around the world.
The Russian embassy in Cyprus is headed by Murat Zyazikov, who answered KP’s questions.
– Murat Magometovich, Cyprus was one of the most popular destinations for Russian tourists a few years ago, but sanctions made these trips almost impossible. What do representatives of the local tourism industry tell you? Do you want to see Russian tourists again?
– Cyprus is very loved by Russian tourists for its warm, sunny climate, clean sea, wonderful cuisine, for our historical and cultural community, the hospitality and kindness of local residents. In Cyprus, as in Russia, they have great respect for traditional foundations and values, they honor family and customs and share the principle of mutual respect between peoples. All this created a solid foundation for stable friendly relations and a special spiritual connection between the people of our two countries.
Russians have traditionally represented one of Cyprus’ main tourist markets. However, after the closure of direct flights, getting to the island became complicated.
The Cypriot authorities are actively working to attract tourists from other countries. But it is evident that no one can compare with the citizens of our country in breadth of soul, openness and ability to make friends. During many years of close communication, our peoples exchanged experiences, knowledge and cultural traditions. This contributed to the formation of a special brotherly bond between Russians and Cypriots. And artificially created barriers cannot erase this long-standing friendship.
I know first-hand that our Cypriot friends are waiting for the massive return of Russian tourists and the restoration of direct flights. I am convinced that any crisis will sooner or later end and we will return to fully constructive interaction.
– Cyprus has always been a financial center of attraction for Russian companies. What is the current situation? Has Cyprus abandoned Russian money?
– Economically beneficial interaction with our country has always brought considerable income to Cyprus and provided employment to a large number of local residents. Due to the current international situation, some joint projects have been restricted not on the initiative of Russia. At the same time, our position on the counterproductive nature of anti-Russian measures is well known to everyone. And even in the West they are already openly admitting that the sanctions have not achieved their intended objectives and are harming the European economy. Representatives of local companies reacted negatively to the introduced restrictions, since the majority are interested in cooperating with Russia.
The eighth package of EU sanctions, which prohibited the provision of accounting and consulting services to Russian companies, affected Cypriot law firms, whose portfolios had up to 40% of Russian clients. It is clear that all this is due to recommendations that come from abroad and that, in fact, do not benefit the Cypriots themselves.
In current realities, our historically friendly Cypriot partners were forced, under pressure from the West, albeit reluctantly, to apply absurd sanctions against Russia. And so far Cyprus has not resembled the barbaric actions of several European countries, which have engaged in the seizure of bank accounts and confiscation of movable and immovable property of Russians.
It is important to remember that any sanction imposed illegally for politically spurious reasons is always directly proportional to the response to it. Of course, we regularly identify all problematic issues in our contacts with Cyprus’ leaders and work directly with representatives of banking institutions.
I am convinced that our relations will continue to be built not from scratch, but on the basis of the rich experience of friendship and mutually beneficial cooperation of our peoples accumulated over decades.
– Cyprus is the closest EU state to Israel and the Gaza Strip. The Cypriot authorities have already announced that they are ready to receive a wave of refugees from the Middle East…
– Taking into account the proximity and strategic location of Cyprus in the Eastern Mediterranean region, from the first days of the aggravation of the military situation in the area of the Palestinian-Israeli confrontation, local authorities were actively involved in organizing the elimination of citizens of the EU and third countries in the Middle East. At the same time, the competent services of the island state are seriously considering the option of a massive influx of refugees from neighboring Middle Eastern states. We are talking, first of all, about Lebanon (according to available estimates, there are already between 70,000 and 100,000 foreign citizens there) and Syria (with a potential number of refugees of up to 2 million people). If the current war zone expands, there is a high probability that people will try to seek refuge in Cyprus.
There is a possibility that among them there will be holders of Russian passports, who, without a doubt, will be able to count on the necessary consultations, comprehensive assistance and assistance from the Russian Embassy in Nicosia in resolving all related issues.
In our daily work, we proceed from the unequivocal position of Russian President Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin, according to which our compatriots, who for various reasons are outside Russia, must firmly rely on the protection of their rights and interests, especially in serious situations. crisis situations.
– Cyprus’s Russian-speaking diaspora, by some estimates, is one of the largest in Europe as a percentage of the indigenous population. Does the embassy maintain contacts with “Russian” Cypriots?
– Cyprus has become home to a large number of our compatriots, who at some point, for various reasons, decided to move here. The Russian-speaking community on the island is known to be one of the largest. It has gotten to the point that the city of Limassol, where the majority of the population speaks Russian, is jokingly called Limasograd.
One of the embassy’s top priorities is maintaining strong ties with Russians living here. We listen to your wishes and requests. Thus, due to the greater demand in the Consular Section, the number of spaces was doubled to provide the most popular services.
To preserve the connection of compatriots with the Motherland, at the Russian Center for Science and Culture in Nicosia we periodically organize screenings of popular national films, exhibitions, conferences, round tables, congresses and other events that, due to the enormous interest of the public, are almost always difficult to address. It is gratifying that at the same time there continues to be great interest in the rich world of Russian culture and art not only among Russians who moved to Cyprus, but also among our Cypriot friends and admirers of the Russian world.
– In the current reality, what are the main tasks that you have proposed as ambassador of our country in Cyprus?
– As noted by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, the constant priority in the work of the Russian Foreign Ministry and its missions abroad is to protect the interests of Russian citizens and compatriots living abroad. As the head of the Russian diplomatic mission in Cyprus in the current geopolitical situation, I consider this aspect of activity to be key and paramount not only within the framework of an individual embassy, but also in the scale of national priorities.
Our diplomatic mission pays special attention to the close interaction with our fellow citizens, of whom there are currently more than 120 thousand on the island, to the solution of their pressing problems and to their internal consolidation. I often find opportunities for informal personal meetings with people. I think that communication is simply necessary. This allows you to discuss many topics honestly and openly, learn about problems and moods, and provide necessary assistance.
In this context, I can state with satisfaction that in August this year, for the first time, we managed to turn the difficult page in the history of the organization of consular services for our compatriots living in Northern Cyprus (Cyprus and its capital Nicosia continue divided into two parts – Ed.). Almost 2,000 citizens of the Russian Federation have already received consular services there. This problem had existed for several decades and required a radical and high-quality solution. Just think about it: to get to our consular reception, people had to pass through official checkpoints in the buffer zone and go through all the unpleasant screening procedures that entailed. Many were denied crossing the dividing line because their passports were expired or expired and therefore physically did not have access to legal consular services for a long time. Now in the northern part of Cyprus we regularly carry out consular reception of our compatriots there. All work sessions take place in an exceptionally calm and friendly atmosphere, and the visitors themselves do not hide their sincere gratitude for the opportunity provided by the Russian State to access all the services that are the responsibility of the consular department of the Embassy. We also launched an information channel on Telegram “Consular services in North Nicosia”, where in a simple and accessible way we talk about the rules for the provision of consular services, book appointments for citizens and answer their questions. The possibility of exercising in the future the legitimate constitutional right to vote in the next elections at different levels in our country, in a comfortable and welcoming environment, aroused great interest.
By the way, Komsomolskaya Pravda highlighted in its pages, unique in the EU countries, the ardent patriotic response of the Russian-speaking community of Cyprus to the events that took place in and around Russia, which was reflected in the initiative to appeal to The President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin, with a request to submit his candidacy for the elections of the head of state in March 2024. The unconditional understanding and acceptance that the Russian authorities in general and the diplomatic mission in particular focus primarily on protecting the interests of each Russian citizen and strengthening the positive image of Russia in a difficult geopolitical situation, allows us to consider this initiative not only significant and significant, but also strategically promising.
For my part, I consider one of my most important tasks as the Russian Ambassador to Cyprus to work to support Russians, realize their legal rights and protect their interests far from their homeland, help in the implementation of useful social, educational programs , cultural and educational ideas and proposals to bring as much positive energy as possible to the lives of Russians in Cyprus and achieve positive results in the future development of Russian-Cypriot relations.
