President condemns Russian invasion on “dark anniversary” (Updated)

Outgoing president Nicos Anastasiades again condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on its one-year “dark anniversary”.

“February 24 marks the dark anniversary of the unprovoked attack on one independent country by another. We unequivocally condemn the Russian invasion, and together with all free countries, we call on Russia to withdraw its troops from Ukraine,” Anastasiades wrote on Twitter.

Foreign Minister Ioannis Kasoulides echoed the president’s statements, condemning Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and stressing that Cyprus is also a victim of foreign invasion.

Elsewhere, the Cyprus Peace Council said it strongly condemns the ongoing Russian invasion and expressed its solidarity with all the victims on whichever side they may be.

It called on the international community to press for a ceasefire, curb the arms race, and a return to peaceful negotiations.

Meanwhile, Diko MP Christos Senekis told the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) during its latest meeting that the ongoing war threatens economic and environmental security.

He emphasised that Cyprus has been hit hard by the impact of the sanctions on Russia, most notably in terms of tourism to the island.

Senekis stressed that joint decisions on sanctions should be accompanied by mitigating measures.

Anastasiades’ comments echoed those of a UN resolution backed by the UN general assembly in New York on Thursday night.

The UN demanded “that the Russian Federation immediately, completely and unconditionally withdraw all of its military forces from the territory of Ukraine within its internationally recognized borders” and called for a cessation of hostilities.

The motion was backed by 141 nations but there were some notable abstentions (32 in total).

They included China, India, Iran and South Africa.

In December, the Cyprus Mail reported that Cypriots remain amongst the most skeptical of the EU’s handling of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, with 53 per cent approving overall of the bloc’s support for Kyiv.

The survey was ordered by the European Commission.

Their findings were largely in line with previous polls, such as the one in May which found that Cyprus is the only EU nation where an absolute majority disagrees or tends to disagree that Russian authorities are first and foremost responsible for the war in Ukraine.

Another in October found that just over half of Cypriots believe that the government was right to condemn the Russian invasion of Ukraine – at 54 per cent – but 58 per cent disagree with joining the EU sanctions.