POLITICS: Russia says guarantee system for Cyprus should be scrapped

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Friday the current system of foreign guarantees for Cyprus is anachronistic and does not respond to political reality any longer.

In statements in Moscow with his Cypriot counterpart, Nikos Christodoulides, Lavrov said Russia does not see any need for making changes to the UN peacekeeping force in Cyprus, saying that guarantees on behalf of the UN Security Council will be a precondition for safeguarding the independence and the territorial integrity of Cyprus.

 Lavrov underlined that Cyprus is an important partner of Russia in Europe.

“Our multidimensional cooperation is based on traditional friendship ties and mutual affection, on cultural affinity, and serves the goals of security and stability in the Eastern Mediterranean and the European continent in general.”

The Cypriot Foreign Minister expressed satisfaction for Russia’s clear position in favour of the abolishment of the 1960 anachronistic system of guarantor powers and of any intervention rights, as well as for the need for the unhindered continuation of a UN peacekeeping presence in Cyprus as long as the current, unacceptable state of affairs continues.

Lavrov also said that they discussed international and regional issues and that they agreed to continue their contacts both at a bilateral level and in international fora.