Anastasiades receives credentials of Russian, Japanese envoys

President Nicos Anastasiades on Thursday received the credentials of the new ambassadors of the Russian Federation and Japan.

The new ambassadors are the Russian Murat Zyazikov and Japanese Yamawaki Yoshio.

Welcoming them, the president wished them every success in the performance of their duties and expressed confidence that the new government will provide them with all possible assistance to further strengthen bilateral relations.

Taking this opportunity, Anastasiades expressed his warm thanks for the mutually beneficial cooperation over his ten years in power between the Republic of Cyprus and Russia and Japan, respectively.

He also thanked them for the support and principled stance of the two countries on the Cyprus problem and the efforts to achieve a comprehensive settlement on the basis of a bizonal bicommunal federation.

Anastasiades then briefed the new ambassadors on the latest developments on the Cyprus issue and the efforts the Greek Cypriot side continues to make to create the necessary conditions for the resumption of the negotiation process, despite Turkish insistence on promoting a two-state solution.

Zyazikov, a former KGB officer from Kyrgyzstan, was appointed ambassador of Russia to Cyprus on September 12, 2022.

The new ambassador is considered a close ally with Russian president Vladimir Putin, especially because of his province’s proximity to Chechnya.

He succeeds the controversial Stanislav Osadchiy who held the post since 2013. The former ambassador has been criticised over his interference in local affairs while he had said in a recent interview that Cyprus’ stance on Russia’s war in Ukraine will be taken into account in bilateral relations. The diplomat also failed to see any similarity between the Turkish invasion and Russia’s invasion in Ukraine.

Yoshio replaces Izumi Seki who was ambassador to Cyprus since June 2020.