Cyprus credibility being judged abroad says AG

Cyprus must be cautious on the matter of sanctions as the country’s credibility is being judged abroad, Attorney General Georgios Savvides told reporters on Tuesday.

Asked what the situation is following a further round of US and UK sanctions announced last Friday, Savvides replied that “the issue of sanctions is very, very delicate… and my request is that we avoid making too many statements on the matter”.

I believe that it is not just a legal issue, he said, noting that his office is investigating “both the information that we receive from various countries and various other complaints that come from different other entities and we are doing what must be done”.

The attorney general’s comments just a day after the influential Cyprus Bar Association claimed that the overreaction to the Western sanctions caused more damage than the sanctions themselves.

“When I had said we should not overreact and that there was an overreaction, I was accused of downplaying this issue. Far from it. Therefore, it is not necessary for senior state officials to make endless statements to the media,” chairman of the Cyprus Bar Association Christos Clerides said on Monday.