Ioannis Tirkides

In a previous article, we examined the concentration of power and erosion of democracy in Cyprus. This article advances that discussion, focusing on the 2025 Democracy Index from the Economist Intelligence ...

The Republic of Cyprus is currently at a significant constitutional juncture. The legislative debate on amending Article 17 of the Constitution, which guarantees the secrecy of correspondence, for a new surveillance ...

The escalating conflict involving the United States, Israel, and Iran has transcended a localised military intervention to become a systemic disruption of the global order. International observers now reach a ...

A balance sheet analysis of the Cyprus economic experiment (2013–2026) Looking back from the vantage point of 2026, the official narrative surrounding the Cypriot economy’s post-crisis recovery is broadcast as a ...

In the wake of the March 2, 2026, drone strike on the British Sovereign Base at Akrotiri, President Nikos Christodoulides has moved to reorient the Republic of Cyprus’s grand strategy. His ...

As the conflict unfolds, it is becoming clearer that war with Iran will not be a quick, surgical operation as initially expected. Instead, it signifies a deeper struggle and a ...

The geopolitical landscape remains defined by unrelenting tension. Established norms are being challenged, and the traditional structures of international relations are in a state of visible decay. From the brazen ...

By Ioannis Tirkides The Cypriot tax system, which was designed almost a quarter of a century ago, in 2002, is facing problems of ageing. Although it was originally designed to be ...

By Ioannis Tirkides It is widely acknowledged by diplomatic observers and historians alike that the Conference on Cyprus held in Crans-Montana in July 2017 represented the high-water mark, the closest the ...

An automatic cost-of-living adjustment, or CoLA, is effectively a system of wage indexation designed to address inflation, yet there is no universal application nor a unified model for its implementation. ...

In a move that echoes one of the most perilous moments in its recent history, the Republic of Cyprus is acquiring the Barak MX, a sophisticated integrated air defense system ...

Despite the early optimism they generated, the meetings in Alaska and Washington in mid-August, achieved nothing of substance, except that in their aftermath we may be nearer to an escalation ...

The trade agreement between the EU and the United States was greeted as a humiliating event in European media. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen met President Trump at ...

Taxation is perhaps the ultimate political act in a democratic society. It’s not just about raising revenue and spending it; it’s also about the kind of society we ...

This year’s annual lecture in economics from the Cyprus Economic Society, featured Sir Paul Collier, a pre-eminent global development economist and professor of Economics and Public Policy at the ...

Trade is structural and its implications for policy and markets alike are pervasive, especially when deficits have been persistent and accumulating for a long time. Currencies and trade imbalances are ...

‘There are decades where nothing happens; and there are weeks where decades happen.’ This quote often attributed to Lenin, may capture the moment. It is now a little more than ...

By Ioannis Tirkides History is not just the outcome of personalities, competing platforms, or a matter of chance. It can be all of that at times. But history is cumulative ...

By Ioannis Tirkides The Middle East is currently embroiled in a complex and potentially explosive situation that could spiral out of control. Iran’s retaliatory strike against Israel on October 1 ...

By Ioannis Tirkides We use summary indicators to conveniently measure the performance and health of the economy. But while these can be useful in some respects, they have their drawbacks ...

By Ioannis Tirkides When the Bank of Japan raised its key interest rate from a range of zero to 0.1 per cent to 0.25 per cent, arguably to stem the yen’s ...

By Ioannis Tirkides A common thread runs through many of the elections taking place around the world this year: a rise in populism and nationalism, a move towards protectionism and ...

By Ioannis Tirkides These are unprecedented times. We are simultaneously on the cusp of a technological revolution and the promise of unparalleled economic prospects, and on the brink of total ...

By Ioannis Tirkides 2023 has been a year of turmoil, of wars and geopolitical upsets. It has also been a year of weaker economic growth with only a few but notable ...