By Nikolaos Prakas and Tom Cleaver

Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar called on Russia to recognise north and for Russian President Vladimir Putin to interact directly with it, it emerged on Monday.

“I would like to ask the Russian leadership and the Russian people to reconsider their policy on Cyprus, especially after what happened in Ukraine and what is happening in the world with a multitude of global changes,” he said in statements to the Tass news agency.

“If Moscow had direct relations with North Cyprus, this would also be beneficial for Turkey, which seeks to develop relations with all countries, including Russia,” he said.

Tatar said that the north and the south of the island should coexist as separate independent states, while the Russian side should reconsider its approach to this issue in accordance with its interests.

“And Moscow’s interest is clearly not on the side of the European solution, which presupposes that the north and the south of Cyprus should be united in a kind of federation under the leadership of the EU and that Turkey should leave this area completely,” he added.

According to Tass, Tatar is convinced that if a united Cyprus joins the EU, Russia will lose its influence in the region and any political ties with the island.

“Cyprus should be divided into two independent sovereign parts and, in this way, Ankara’s presence as a security guarantor on the island would remain, while Turkish troops would continue to provide security in the northern part of Cyprus,” he said.

In addition, he said he welcomes the opening of a Russian consular office in the north and reiterated his desire for there to be direct passenger flights between Russia and Ercan (Tymbou) airport.

Of the consular office, he said “it is already in operation, and providing services to Russian nationals. They face some difficulties here in Cyprus, and now they can turn to the consular office. It is important to have a consular office in an area where around 50,000 of your citizens live.”

He added that a range of services are available at the office, including the issue and renewal of passports, conscription deferrals, and even buying and selling real estate.

“We would enjoy seeing more Russians here. We respect them and have friendly relations with them,” he said, adding that Russian citizens can “very easily” reach the north.

“We are connected to Turkey with daily flights, and we have connections with many different Turkish airports … I know Russian citizens face certain difficulties when travelling to Europe … but they have no such problems with Turkey.”

He added that should direct flights begin between Russia and the north, “this destination will become very popular, and also, people from north Cyprus will fly to Moscow for trade and for business, for tourism and for education.”

He also called upon the Russian government to strengthen its ties to the north, saying “we have good relations with the Turkic language-speaking countries of Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan Turkmenistan and Kyrgyzstan.”

“We would like to have closer ties with Russia because the Russians are very close to the Turks. We have a common foundation, a common history,” he said.

Meanwhile, the north has been pegged as one of the new hotspots for laundering Russian money, with Trikomo “taking up the mantle that Limassol has” in the state-controlled areas.

The Cyprus Mail’s own investigation in the matter found that around 70 per cent of people residing in new high rise buildings in the Trikomo district are reportedly Russian nationals.

A Russian estate agent explained to the Cyprus Mail that “In Kyrenia, you can now only build up to two storeys, whereas here, you can pretty much build whatever you want,” while Cyprus Turkish Teachers’ Union (Ktos) chairman Sener Ercil told British newspaper The Guardian, “you hear of Russians driving over from the south with suitcases filled with cash.”