By Parisa Hafezi and John Irish

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and foreign ministers of five other world powers joined talks on Iran’s contested nuclear programme on Saturday with the two sides edging towards a breakthrough to ease a dangerous decade-old standoff.

The Chinese, Russian, French, British and German foreign ministers – Wang Yi, Sergei Lavrov, Laurent Fabius, William Hague and Guido Westerwelle – all pulled up their sleeves to try to seal an interim deal under which Iran would cap its nuclear activity in exchange for limited relief from sanctions.

Hague and Westerwelle, however, both cautioned that a preliminary accord to turn the page on years of confrontation with the Islamic Republic was not yet guaranteed and that there was much work to do to bridge remaining differences.

“We (foreign ministers) are not here because things are necessarily finished,” Hague told reporters. “There is a huge amount of agreement…(But) the remaining gaps are important and we will be turning our attention to those over coming hours. They remain very difficult negotiations.”

Diplomats earlier said a formidable sticking point in the intense negotiations, which began on Wednesday, may have been overcome with compromise language that does not explicitly recognise Iran’s claim to a “right to enrich” uranium but acknowledges all countries’ right to their own civilian nuclear energy. [ID:

But Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said Iran’s demand to continue construction of a heavy-water reactor near Arak that could yield plutonium – an alternative bomb material – remained a tough outstanding issue.

Ryabkov said a breakthrough was closer now than at the Nov. 7-9 round of Geneva talks but, he told Russia’s Itar-Tass news agency, “unfortunately I can’t say that there is a certainty of reaching that breakthrough.”

“It’s not a done deal. There’s a realistic chance but there’s a lot of work to do,” Westerwelle told reporters.

NUCLEAR BOMB RISK

The powers’ goal is to cap Iran’s nuclear energy programme, which has a history of evading U.N. inspections and investigations, to remove any risk of Tehran covertly refining uranium to a level suitable for bombs rather than electricity. Iranian authorities deny any agenda to “weaponise” enrichment.

“We are close to a deal but still differences over two-three issues remain,” said Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Abbar Araqchi, a senior negotiator.

An initial accord on confidence-building steps would be designed to launch a phased process of detente with Iran after decades of tense estrangement, and banish the spectre of a devastating Middle East war over its nuclear aspirations.

A preliminary pact would run for six months while the powers and Tehran hammer out a broader, longer-term settlement.

Diplomacy revived dramatically after the landslide election of Hassan Rouhani, a relative moderate, as Iranian president in June, replacing bellicose nationalist Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

Rouhani aims to relieve Iran’s isolation by mending fences with big powers and getting sanctions lifted. He has obtained crucial public backing from clerical Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, keeping powerful hardline critics at bay.

TALKS AT “FINAL MOMENT”?

The draft deal would have Iran suspend some sensitive nuclear activities, above all medium-level enrichment, in exchange for the release of some of many billions of dollars in Iranian funds frozen in foreign bank accounts, and renewed trade in precious metals, petrochemicals and aircraft parts.

The United States might also agree to relax pressure on other countries not to buy Iranian oil. Tehran has made clear it wants a more significant dilution of the sanctions blocking its oil exports and use of the international banking system.

France’s Fabius, who objected to what he felt was a one-side offer to Iran floated at the November 7-9 negotiating round, seemed guarded on arrival in Geneva early on Saturday.

“I hope we can reach a deal, but a solid deal. I am here to work on that,” he said. France has consistently taken a tough line over Iran’s nuclear programme, helping Paris cultivate closer ties with Tehran’s adversaries in Israel and the Gulf.

Kerry left for Geneva “with the goal of continuing to help narrow the differences and move closer to an agreement,” State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said. Direct U.S.-Iranian engagement is crucial to a peaceful solution given the rupture in bilateral ties since Iran’s Islamic Revolution in 1979.

Echoing optimism that a deal was close, China’s state-run Xinhua news agency quoted a foreign ministry spokesman as saying the talks “have reached the final moment”.

On the politically charged enrichment issue, Western powers say there is no such thing under the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty as a “right to enrich”, but Iran has viewed this as a matter of national sovereignty and crucial to any deal.

Diplomats said revised wording on the table did not explicitly recognise a right to produce nuclear fuel by any country. “If you speak about the right to a peaceful nuclear programme, that’s open to interpretation,” a diplomat said.

“CHRISTMAS PRESENT”

For the powers, an interim deal would mandate a halt to Iran’s enrichment of uranium to a purity of 20 percent – a major technical step towards the bomb threshold, more sweeping U.N. nuclear inspections in Iran and an Arak reactor shutdown.

The OPEC producer rejects suspicions it is covertly trying to develop the means to produce nuclear weapons, saying it is stockpiling nuclear material for future atomic power plants.

Israel pursued a lobbying campaign against the offer of respite from sanctions for Iran, voicing its conviction that all this would achieve would be more time for Iran to master nuclear technology and amass potential bomb fuel.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told local media in Moscow that Iran was essentially given an “unbelievable Christmas present – the capacity to maintain this (nuclear) breakout capability for practically no concessions at all.”

THE government has announced further relaxations to capital controls that will come into effect on Monday.

The decree issued by the Ministry of Finance allows current accounts opened when borrowing from a bank to be used to service the loan and normal activities, but not for depositing cash, while the credit balance of the account must not exceed the balance of the loan at any time.

The capital can be deposited in cash or transferred from other accounts subject to the restrictions in place at the time.

Cyprus introduced capital controls in March to avoid a bank-run following an EU decision to seize deposits and use them to recapitalise the island’s lenders.

LIDL CYPRUS said that it will offer five cents from the sale of every Deluxe-brand item until the end of the year to the “Arodafnousa” day care centre in Nicosia to help the Anti-Cancer Society recruit more nurses.

“Arodafnousa” was founded in 1976 and has since been providing medical and nursing care to cancer patients. A team of physicians, nurses, physiotherapists, psychologists, sociologists, priests, volunteers and specialists in palliative care are working to provide patients with a better quality of life and to cover their needs.

As a result of the economic crisis, the lack of human resources does not allow all the wards at the centre to operate properly. Lidl’s contribution will help to reopen some of the rooms to accommodate even more cancer-suffering patients.

A PART of Nicosia’s Makarios Avenue will be pedestrianised to host a number of Christmas events from December 6 to January 6. The initiative by the “Lefkosiazo” volunteer group and the Nicosia Municipality aims to revitalise the capital’s commercial centre and boost traffic during the holiday season.

A 300-metre stretch of Makarios Avenue will be closed to cars from Evagoras street to Arnaldas street and wooden huts will be put up offering hot drinks, food and sweets. Christmas music and decorations will turn Makarios into “Christmas Avenue” with various events and children’s activities planned.

All net proceeds will be donated to charity.

The big event is sponsored by Alpha Mega supermarkets, Mac Donald’s, MTN, Leroy Merlin, Cosmos Trading and Coca Cola.

By Erika Solomon

Islamist rebels led by al Qaeda-linked fighters seized Syria’s largest oilfield on Saturday, cutting off President Bashar al-Assad’s access to almost all local crude reserves, activists said.

There was no immediate comment from the government and it was not possible to verify the reports of the capture independently.

But the loss of the al-Omar oil field in the eastern Deir al-Zor province, if confirmed, could leave Assad’s forces almost completely reliant on imported oil in their highly mechanised military campaign to put down a 2-1/2-year uprising.

“Now, nearly all of Syria’s usable oil reserves are in the hands of the Nusra Front and other Islamist units … The regime’s neck is now in Nusra’s hands,” said Rami Abdelrahman, head of the pro-opposition Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

Assad’s forces have gained momentum against the rebels in recent months, partially due to support from the Lebanese Shi’ite Muslim milita Hezbollah and its regional ally Iran.

In the northern province of Aleppo on Saturday, army air strikes killed at least 40 people and wounded dozens, most of them civilians, the Observatory said.

But opposition fighters, particularly powerful Islamist factions, still hold large swathes of territory in northern and eastern Syria.

Foreign powers are trying to bring together the warring parties at an international peace conference, dubbed ‘Geneva 2′, planned for mid-December. Both the Syrians and their international partners are at odds over terms for the talks.

Syria’s peace envoy Lakhdar Brahimi discussed the conference on Saturday with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Geneva. He is expected to meet U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry later.

FUEL FROM IRAN

The civil war in Syria has killed more than 100,000 people, according to the United Nations. The conflict is also destabilising Syria’s neighbours, exacerbating sectarian and ethnic tensions that transcend borders and fuelling Sunni-Shi’ite tensions in particular.

The rebels are led by the Sunni Muslim majority in Syria and have drawn support from radical Sunni groups such as al Qaeda and other foreign militants.

Shi’ite countries and militias have thrown their weight behind Assad, who is from Syria’s minority Alawite sect, an offshoot of Shi’ite Islam.

Until the reported insurgent capture of the field, a pipeline transporting the crude to central Syria for refinement had still been working despite the civil war.

Most oil reserves are now in the hands of rebels, local tribes or Kurdish militias, some of whom may be willing to sell oil to Assad.

Assad is also believed to be getting fuel from Shi’ite Muslim giant Iran, his main regional ally.

A video posted on the internet showed rebels in camouflage and black scarves driving a tank under a sign that read “Euphrates Oil Company – al-Omar field”. The speaker in the video said the field was overrun at dawn on Saturday, but the authenticity of the footage could not be independently verified.

Syria is not a significant oil producer and has not exported any oil since late 2011, when international sanctions took effect to raise pressure on Assad. Prior to the sanctions, the country exported 370,000 barrels per day, mainly to Europe.

The conflict began in March 2011 as peaceful protests against four decades of Assad family rule but has degenerated into a civil war were more than 100 people are killed each day.

REBEL OFFENSIVE NEAR CAPITAL

Despite international efforts to launch peace talks, neither the rebels or Assad’s forces appear ready to lay down arms.

Activists near Damascus said a heavy battle was raging in the eastern suburbs outside the capital between the army and pro-government militias and rebel units, including the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), an al Qaeda affiliate.

Rebels are trying to retake the town of Oteiba in order to break a heavy blockade on the opposition-held suburbs in the east that ring the capital. For months Assad’s forces have choked off the areas from both food, supplies and weapons.

The fighting caused dozens of deaths on both sides, a fighter in the area said.

In Switzerland, diplomatic wrangling continued as the international supporters of different sides of the conflict discussed a framework for talks.

Moscow, Assad’s main arms supplier, wants Iran to participate in the peace conference, which is opposed by both the United States and Saudi Arabia, a regional rival of Tehran and major backer of the rebels.

Brahimi is to hold “trilateral” talks with Russian deputy foreign ministers Mikhail Bogdanov and Gennady Gatilov, as well as U.S. Under Secretary Wendy Sherman, in Geneva on Monday.

By Mitch Phillips

Daniel Sturridge scored an 89th-minute equaliser to give Liverpool a 3-3 draw at Everton on Saturday after the hosts had twice come from behind to lead 3-2 in one of the Premier League’s games of the season.

The match got off to a breathless start when Philippe Coutinho scrambled Liverpool ahead after five minutes, only for Kevin Mirallas to hammer in the equaliser two minutes later at Goodison Park.

Liverpool regained the lead after 19 minutes with a long-range free kick by Luis Suarez but Everton made all the running in the second half and deservedly levelled with a Romelu Lukaku shot before the on-loan Belgian striker thumped in a brilliant header eight minutes from time.

Sturridge, on as a late substitute, had the last word, however, when he nodded Liverpool’s third to deny Everton what would have been only their second victory in 14 league derbies.

Second-placed Liverpool move to 24 points, one behind leaders Arsenal, who host third-placed Southampton later on Saturday. Everton are in fifth place with 21 points.

By Nemanja Bjedov

Pavlos Kontides earned a silver medal at the 2013 Laser World Championship at Oman’s Al-Mussanah Sports City on Saturday, trailing newly-crowned champion Robert Scheidt of Brazil by 13 points, after finishing the last race of the event in 13th position.

“He sailed a perfect race, so well done to him,” said the 23-year-old Cypriot. “But with some consistent training, I will be able to up my game and I know next season I will be much better.

“I am still learning and developing and Robert is at the peak of his game.

“Age-wise he is 40 and at some stage will start to decline, whereas I am 23 and on the rise, so the odds are against him,” Kontides said.

“I really wanted to savour the gold medal, but I will be trying my hardest again next time,” the Cypriot sailor concluded.

Kontides became the first Cypriot athlete ever to win an Olympic medal for his country. He secured the silver medal in the 2012 London Olympic Games in the Men’s Laser class.

By Alister Doyle and Nina Chestney

Almost 200 nations kept a plan to reach a new U.N. climate pact in 2015 alive on Saturday when rich and poor countries reached a compromise on sharing out the efforts needed to slow global warming.

A two-week negotiation in Warsaw had been due to end on Friday, but was blocked over a timetable for the first U.N. climate accord that would set greenhouse gas emissions requirements for all nations. The pact is due to be agreed in 2015 and come into force after 2020.

Negotiators finally agreed that all countries should work to curb emissions – a process described in the jargon as “intended nationally determined contributions” – as soon as possible and ideally by the first quarter of 2015.

The agreement ended deadlock between rich and poor about sharing out the burden of limiting emissions blamed for causing more heatwaves, floods, droughts and rising sea levels.

Under the last climate pact, the Kyoto Protocol, only the most developed countries were required to limit their emissions – one of the main reasons the United States refused to accept it, saying rapidly growing economies like China and India must also take part.

“Just in the nick of time, the negotiators in Warsaw delivered enough to keep the process moving,” said Jennifer Morgan of the World Resources Institute think-tank.

China had insisted that developing nations should announce deep cuts in emissions while allowing emerging economies room to burn more fossil fuels to help end poverty.

But the United States noted that all nations agreed in 2012 that the 2015 deal would be “applicable to all” and accused emerging nations of harping back to previous deals.

“I feel like I am going into a time warp. That is folly,” said Todd Stern, the U.S. special envoy for climate change.

Developed nations had wanted all to take on “commitments”, not the weaker-sounding “contributions” that they settled for.

CLIMATE AID

Before Saturday, the only concrete measure to have emerged after two weeks was an agreement on new rules to protect tropical forests, which soak up carbon dioxide as they grow.

During the Warsaw meeting, no major nation offered tougher action to slow rising world greenhouse gas emissions and Japan backtracked from its carbon goals for 2020, after shuttering its nuclear industry after the Fukushima disaster.

Even after breaking the deadlock over which countries should tackle emissions, talks continued on another issue that has divided rich and poor: the aid that developed countries pay to developing ones to help them curb emissions and cope with to the impacts of climate change.

Developed nations, which promised in 2009 to raise aid to $100 billion a year after 2020 from $10 billion a year in 2010-12, have resisted calls to set targets for 2013-19.

A draft text merely urged developed nations, which have been more focused on spurring economic growth than on fixing climate change, to set “increasing levels” of aid.

The talks have also proposed a “Warsaw Mechanism” which would provide expertise, and possibly aid, to help developing nations cope with loss and damage from extreme events such as heatwaves, droughts and floods, and creeping threats such as rising sea levels and desertification.

Developing nations have insisted on a “mechanism” – to show it was separate from existing structures – even though rich countries say that it will not get new funds beyond the planned $100 billion a year from 2020.

By Ralli Papageorgiou

A BI-COMMUNAL committee established five years ago to protect and preserve the rich cultural heritage of Cyprus has already restored several places of worship and monuments on both sides of the divide.

Dozens more projects are in the pipeline.

The team of 10 Greek and Turkish Cypriots deliberately started with two small and manageable schemes – the restoration of a mosque in Denia and the Profitis Elias church in Philia, both now saved for future generations. Also completed is the Panagia church in Trachoni and work on the Turkish baths in Kato Paphos is nearly finished.

Panayia church in Trachoni before restoration

All this has helped build vital trust and co-operation for more ambitious plans, including the urgent restoration of Apostolos Andreas monastery in the Karpas peninsula and work on the OthelloTower in the walled city of Famagusta.

“The road to where we are now has not been a bed of roses,” said Takis Hadjidemetriou, the head of the Greek Cypriot half of the Technical Committee on Cultural Heritage in Cyprus. “We started by accusing each other and using propaganda against each other. At the end of the day all this evolved into cooperation, a joint effort, common heritage and culture and of course looking ahead to our shared future.”

The mosque in Denia before restoration

The Technical Committee, formed under UN auspices in 2008, is supported by EU funds and help from the UNDP. But both Hadjidemetriou and his Turkish Cypriot counterpart, Ali Tuncay, stress they are ready to respond to any individual or organisation that wants to contribute.

Christakis Panayiotou, the head of Denia’s community council, said locals are delighted that the dilapidated mosque in their once mixed village has been restored. Many volunteered to build a pavement and plant flower beds around the place of worship, which was built in the mid-19th century. Expressing his wish for reunification, Panayiotou said: “We don’t want to be at odds with the Turkish Cypriots. We want peace and friendship with them.”

The mosque in Denia after restoration

Equally successful has been the restoration of the 17th Century Panagia church in Trachoni, a small but beautiful place of worship, which is now just waiting for return of its celebrated iconostasis which is currently under reconstruction.

EU experts have so far identified some 140 monuments in Cyprus in need of support, repair and restoration. The Technical Committee is focused on the 40 most in need of “immediate intervention”, 26 of them in the Turkish-occupied north of Cyprus and 14 in the government-controlled areas.

Inside the renovated Panayia church

Preserving Cyprus’s cultural heritage is an endless job, “a matter of cooperation and understanding between the two communities”, Hadjidemetriou said. Neither he nor Tuncay see the monuments as mere old rocks or stones: rather they are the building blocks of a common future based on peace, tolerance and mutual respect.

 By George Mountis

A QUERY from a reader begging for clarification on Capital Gains Tax (CGT) is the theme of this week’s article.

CGT is imposed on ‘gains’ from disposal of immovable property situated in the Republic including shares of companies not listed on a recognised stock exchange which own immovable property situated in Cyprus, at the rate of 20 per cent.

In computing the capital gain the value of the immovable property as at January 1, 1980 (or cost if the date of acquisition is later), the cost of any additions after January 1, 1980 or the date of acquisition if later, any expenditure incurred for the production of the gain and the indexation allowance, are deducted from the sale proceeds.

The following expenses are not considered expenses for the production of the profit and therefore are not deductible: immovable property tax, immovable property fees, sewerage council fees.

The following disposals of real estate are exempt from CGT:

1.      Transfer on death

2.      Gifts between parents and children and relatives up to third degree

3.      Gift to a company whose shareholders are members of the donor’s family and continue to be family members for a period of five years from the date of the gift

4.      Gift by a family company to its shareholders, if the company had also acquired the property in question via donation. But if the shareholder disposes the property within three years then the shareholder will not be entitled to the deductions

5.      Gifts to a charitable organisation or the government

6.      Exchange and/or disposal under the Agricultural Land Laws exchange provided the gain is used for the acquisition of new property. The gain derived from the exchange reduces the cost of the new property and the tax is paid when the latter is disposed

7.      Transfer of ownership or share transfers in the event of company reorganisations

8.      Transfer of property of a missing person under administration

9.      Transfer of ownership between spouses whose marriage has been dissolved by a court order or in case of transfer of ownership between the same persons for the purpose of settling their property according to the Settlement of Property Relationships between Spouses Law.

Individuals are entitled to deduct from the GCT the following (subject to revision):

• Disposal of principal private residence €85,430 (subject to conditions)
• Disposal of agricultural land by a farmer €25,629
• Other disposals €17,086

These deductions are granted once in the lifetime, until fully exhausted and if an individual claims a combination of them, the maximum deduction granted cannot exceed €85,430.

It is noteworthy that there are perfectly legal ways of reducing your Capital Gains Tax liability:

• Capital losses may be used to offset the gain.
• If you are selling your house/flat partly or fully furnished, you can come to an ‘arrangement’ with your buyer whereby they purchase any furniture, etc. using a separate side agreement. This will reduce your Capital Gains Tax liability as the items included in the agreement should not be liable for CGT.

George Mountis is regional managing partner of The Parthenon Partners www.theparthenonpartners.com

By Stefanos Evripidou

CYPRUS APPEARS to be stuck between a rock and a hard place over a Russian request for use of its Andreas Papandreou military airbase in Paphos, it emerged on Saturday.

Local daily Simerini reported on Saturday that the military airbase southwest of the island has become a bone of contention between Russia and the US, causing headaches for the government.

According to the paper, the Russian government wants to rent permanent space at the airbase for military purposes, as opposed to adopting the practice of other ‘friendly’ states who from time to time request use of facilities, approval of which remains at the Cyprus government’s discretion.

The US is reportedly not happy with the Russian request and would see a positive response from Nicosia in a negative light.

The government, said Simerini, remains stuck in the middle of the dispute between the two permanent members of the UN Security Council (UNSC), fearful of upsetting relations with Russia (Cyprus’ main ally in the UNSC) or the US or both.

According to the paper’s sources, consultations with the Russian government to find a solution that would satisfy both sides is ongoing, but has yet to yield results.

Asked to comment on Saturday, Defence Minister Fotis Fotiou all but confirmed the report, saying he did not want to comment directly on such a serious and sensitive issue related to Cyprus’ foreign policy.

The ministries of defence and foreign affairs will cooperate responsibly and take the “right” decision, “always taking into account the country’s national interests”, he said.

Fotiou highlighted the importance of maintaining the growing geostrategic and geopolitical importance of Cyprus which can play a stabilising role in the region.

Asked whether the US has “reprimanded” the government for the facilitations offered to Russia, Fotiou said: “No one has pressed us and what matters is through a proper consultation with friendly countries to take the right decisions.”

He noted that “Russia remains a long-standing supporter of our positions on the national issue” while Cyprus also has friendly relations with the US and other neighbouring countries in the region.

“It is clearly a matter of the Cypriot government taking a decision and such decisions are not taken under any pressure from anyone,” he said.

By Stefanos Evripidou

CYPRUS MUST do everything possible to secure use of Israeli gas at a planned LNG terminal on the island, or else risk jeopardising the whole project, said national gas company head Charles Ellinas on Saturday.

The executive director of the Cyprus National Hydrocarbons Company made the comments on the sidelines of a natural gas workshop in Nicosia organised by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Cyprus Institute.

Speaking to the Cyprus News Agency, Ellinas argued that the estimated 5 trillion cubic feet (tcf) sitting in Noble Energy’s Aphrodite field in its Block 12 concession in Cyprus exclusive economic zone (EEZ) was simply not enough to justify the construction of a costly liquefaction plant at Vassilikos.

Ellinas, who reports say is in the process of negotiating the termination of his contract, said that by the time either Noble finds more gas in Block 12, or Total or ENI-KOGAS, who also have offshore concessions, carry out exploratory and then appraisal drilling, it will be too late to access the attractive Asian market.

Cyprus hopes to start work on the LNG terminal in 2016 and start exporting its own natural gas in 2020.

To proceed with the terminal, argued Ellinas, Cyprus would need Israel’s proven reserves in its Leviathan gas field. But Israel is currently mulling a number of options and is not expected to decide on one until the end of next year.

“We must do everything we can to convince Israel, which has many options, to come to Cyprus. It can send natural gas to Turkey, to Egypt, here, or export it using offshore units,” he said, noting that the offshore unit option is gaining ground as time passes.

“We need to be able to convince them to come here. If they don’t come here, then we will have difficulty.”

Ellinas explained that the longer Cyprus waits, the more technologies change, as do markets, prices and risks. At present the Far Eastern markets are the most attractive in terms of price. But Australia, Mozambique, America, Canada and Russia are all planning to export gas to the Far East from 2018-2020.

If Cyprus delays, it could lose these markets or have to sell its gas at cheaper prices, reducing profit.

It will be left with the European market, whose prices are much lower.

“To make good profits and benefit Cyprus, we need to go to the Far East and if there are delays, there are also risks the prices of this market will be lost,” he said.

By Loucas Charalambous

INEVITABLY, the insufferable hypocrisy that for so long has plagued the political life of this peculiar country also infected the passing of Glafcos Clerides. In fact, it could be argued that, in death, Clerides found release from this very hypocrisy.

This is the conclusion one comes to when looking back at everything that was said during the four days between Clerides’ death and his funeral. I for one shall start with the former president’s drawbacks. In my view, his main flaw was his failure to select capable and appropriate associates. In many cases he chose, or allowed others to choose for him, or tolerated, various incompetents who did damage both to the state and to Clerides personally. To me it is inconceivable that this man, the founder of a school of political thought, having finally become president, chose to appoint to senior state offices people who bore no relation whatsoever with his own political philosophy. As cursory examples I mention the then justice minister Nicos Koshis and Christodoulos Christodoulou, whom Clerides appointed governor of the Central Bank because of – as he said at the time – his honesty.

Even senior DISY cadres were light years away from Clerides’ political philosophy – take for instance former DISY chairman Yiannakis Matsis who, incidentally, during a two-hour television programme dedicated to Clerides, spent just five minutes talking about the deceased and 70 minutes talking about himself!

Clerides had waited 28 long years to see his political vision – solution and reunification of Cyprus – realised. When that hour finally came, these people turned against him, betrayed him in the most cruel fashion, allied themselves with Papadopoulos, Lyssarides and Christofias, and fought Clerides with unbelievable bitterness.

There is of course truth to the tributes poured by almost everyone during those four days after Clerides’ passing, namely, that the man possessed rare political acumen and insight. Clerides could see miles ahead of his political adversaries. It is these gifts that allowed him to formulate, in the wake of the 1974 invasion, his political philosophy on the Cyprus problem, a philosophy that has been resoundingly vindicated by events: “The fruitless passing of time will impose the fait accompli of the invasion and lead us to permanent partition,” he famously warned. It was precisely to promote this political ideology that Clerides founded the DISY party.

For four whole days, then, the hypocrisy swelled through the accolades heaped upon Clerides’ political acumen. I listened as Clerides’ undeniable qualities were being praised even by people – politicians, trade unionists and journalists – who had never respected these traits of his. On the contrary, it was these very same persons, as well as many of Clerides’ “people”, like the three individuals I previously mentioned, who had battled Clerides. They had even gone so far as to accuse him of seeking to dissolve the Republic and turn it into a Turkish “protectorate” when, some 10 years ago, Clerides boldly came out in favour of a settlement, urging people to vote for it in the referendum and appealing to the public’s logic and political good sense if we were to salvage whatever was left.

So why all the hypocrisy? If indeed all these people have had a change of heart and mind and have realised that Clerides was right all along, they should also have had the courage to fess up and apologise for their past stance. Otherwise, why praise the man who supposedly came close to breaking Cyprus apart, as they claimed?

The answer is simple: these people scrambled to take advantage of the former president’s death, thereby promoting themselves, believing that in this way they would earn brownie points in the political game. This is the truth sadly, this then is the calibre of our politicians, and so we can all stop wondering how it is that we’ve come to this sorry state of affairs.

DATA released by Eurostat this week show that electricity prices for Cypriot households during the first half of 2013 dropped by a paltry 0.76 per cent compared to the same period last year. Yet the Electricity Authority of Cyprus (EAC) maintains that, due to a combination of the scrapping of the dreaded ‘Mari surcharge’ and a downward revision of the fuel cost formula, prices have fallen 13 per cent since the beginning of the year. Clearly there’s a disconnect.

According to Eurostat, Cyprus had the third highest household electricity prices during the first semester of 2013, trailing only Germany and Denmark. But in terms of purchasing power standard, Cypriots paid the most expensive electricity in the EU-27 area, forking out 31.4 cents per kilowatt-hour. And it almost goes without saying that, again, the price of electricity for industrial consumers in Cyprus was a chartbuster.

Hardly breaking news, but it comes just as the electricity utility’s trade unions are gearing up for industrial action. It’s a warning shot to the government not to press ahead with the entity’s denationalisation as per the troika’s demands.

EAC unions dismiss as myth that the cost of electricity will drop once the utility is privatised. The syndicates have dredged up the bogeyman, citing examples both in the UK and California, where privatisation has arguably led to an increase in electricity bills and deteriorating service. They warn, too, of the risk of a private monopoly arising, one that would have no qualms about fleecing its customers.

Whereas these may be valid points, the EAC should be one to talk: it ‘boasts’ the highest electricity prices in the EU. Its contention that electricity is so costly here because of the island’s isolated grid and the consequent need to import expensive fuel oil, is getting a bit old. What about efficiency? It’s been documented that the EAC’s machines are not exactly cutting-edge technology, and meantime the newer Combined Cycle Gas Turbines – which cost the taxpayer some €500m – are sitting idle.

Although in theory the market is open to competition, to all intents and purposes the EAC holds a monopoly. The EAC claims there have been no new entrants because the return on equity (ROE) is artificially low to keep prices down. But this is telling only half the story, because the energy regulator, who sets the ROE, may decide to amend those rates once the market is de facto liberalised.

Moreover, the EAC has owed its privileged status to the state, which has cushioned it from outside competition. Protectionist legislation passed in 2007 effectively bars private players from the natural gas market. But with the troika at the gates, the rules of the game are about to change. The memorandum of understanding calls on authorities to “formulate a comprehensive strategy for the rearrangement of the Cypriot energy sector” and to “provide clarity on the intended use of the available ‘isolated market’ and ‘emergent market’ derogations and indicate their intended duration of the latter derogations.”

The reaction by state-owned enterprises to the coming sea change under the bailout deal was predictable. But in the EAC’s case, in particular, the arguments put forth against privatisation are somewhat disingenuous. Beyond the rhetoric, developments will largely be decided by the government’s resolve in dealing with the trade unions.

By Constantinos Psilides

LIKE THEIR relatives in the 1950s, 60s and 70s before them, Cypriot youth are being forced to leave the island in search of work.

In the European Union as a whole, unemployment for the under 25s averages out at 23 per cent. In Cyprus it is nearly double that. Around 44 per cent of under-25-year-olds are looking for work.

But unlike their predecessors who emigrated as far away as Australia and South Africa, young Cypriots are turning for help in the only direction currently available to them, the European Union.

Among a whole raft of measures the EU has announced to help young adults find work was a locally organised two-day job fair in Nicosia called Youth on the Move. Jointly organised by the European Employment Services (EURES) Cyprus and the European Commission Representative Office, the fair focused on job opportunities and living conditions in various EU countries.

The fair, which ended on Saturday, was attended by hundreds of young adults who had travelled from as far away as Paphos.

Looking for work: Valentina

“I’ve been unemployed for a year. I came here to ask for jobs in Cyprus but mostly for opportunities in other countries,” said Valentina, 27, a mathematician from Paphos.

“When I started studying mathematics there weren’t a lot of us. Now the list for appointments in the public sector as a teacher is really long and we don’t have much chance for employment in the private sector due to the financial crisis,” the young scientist said, adding that if the opportunity arose she would most probably leave the island.

Looking for work: Chryso

Chryso, 24, a graduate from Derynia is in her second year of unemployment. “I was just told that there job vacancies in my field of studies in Finland and Holland. I have a degree in psychology so as you can guess there are no job opportunities in Cyprus,” she said.

She said she was prepared to move abroad even though it would be hard to leave her family behind.

“Families in Cyprus are closer than families abroad. We have stronger bonds,” she said. “Leaving the country will take some thinking. But what can we do? If I get a job offer I’ll probably leave,” the 24-year-old said.

Andria, 23, was mostly interested in getting a job in Finland. “If I get a job there I’m leaving the next day,” said Andria, who is currently a part-time employee in a job unrelated to her studies.

“I studied business administration and I enquired about jobs related to my field. I wouldn’t mind being employed in another field though. What matters is employment and that things are better in other countries,” the 23-year old said.

While specific job opportunities were available at the fair, a major focus was on the practicalities and hurdles of living in another country.

Top of the list is the need to learn another language.

Chryso, who found job vacancies in her field of psychology in Finland and Holland, accepted this was a problem, but preferred to focus on the fact that job opportunities existed at all.

For 16-year-old Nikoletta, the issue of language appeared to be just a minor obstacle.

“I’m likely going to live abroad. Job opportunities and the job market is far bigger than Cyprus,” said the teenager from Paphos, expressing the preference for countries like Bulgaria. “There, the only requirement needed is knowing the language,” she added blithely.

She was among the many lyceum students were bussed in for the Friday session by the ministry of education which was a co-sponsor of the event.

Nikoletta’s friend Niki said she would jump at the chance of leaving Cyprus.

“I’ll do it in a heartbeat,” the sixteen-year old said. “I think I’ll have more luck there, a better chance to find employment, have better experiences and see new things.”

Twelve countries were represented in the job fair.

“I hope more people come and ask me for a job. We have them there!” said Niek Iversen the Netherlands representative, almost apologising for the fact that most vacancies were in engineering.

“It’s still a job,” he added, expressing his satisfaction that many people had come to his stand and asked about life in the Netherlands.

Antonis Kafouros, EURES Cyprus manager

The man in charge for the event, Antonis Kafouros the EURES manager in Cyprus explained that providing guidance was a major part of the event.

“What we are aiming for here is to give them the necessary information to start looking for something else,” the EURES manager said recognising that moving to another country is hard. “We inform people on living conditions, about transportation and a variety of practical issues that may arise, such as taxation for example. People who decide to move to another country must be determined and most of all, properly informed.”

Other opportunities exist for those interested in starting off in the business world but lacking proper training and innovative ideas via the Erasmus Plus initiative which was passed by the European Parliament on Tuesday. The youth learning programme has set aside 14.5 billion euros over a seven year period to provide training and education opportunities. Each year Erasmus Plus will allow more than 400,000 students to go on internships abroad.

Cyprus representative Nadia Karayianni was at the jobs fair and explained just what the programme will offer.

“Let’s say a beautician is interested in opening up a beauty parlour but wants to be original and learn how to handle day-to-day problems. We can get her a job at a beauty parlour of another European country,” Karayianni explained, adding that the programme pays for transportation and living costs.

“It’s not a job. It’s a chance to learn from people who were at this job for years and know a thing or two” Karayianni said.

The Erasmus Plus programme is just part of a larger plan to fight youth unemployment. The EU has approved an eight billion euro plan for the next seven years to fight youth unemployment in the EU as part of its Youth Employment Initiative. The goal of the project is for any person under 25 to be able to secure a job or an internship position, four months after finishing studies or losing their job. Cyprus has been allocated 10 million euros.

Labour Minister Zeta Emilianidou told the opening session of the jobs fair that with these funds the government intends to unveil two more initiatives to battle youth unemployment in 2014, though she did not specify what those initiatives would entail.

“Our goal is to utilise all forms of funding the EU has to offer regarding youth unemployement,” said the minister.

But in the meantime, there was a sense that the government, like the unemployed visiting the fair, accepted the reality of looking abroad for work.

“Our goal is to inform people on the chances of securing a job in another European country,” said the minister. “We want to give them whatever they need to succeed in that endeavour, if they choose that path.”

The EURES operates a portal to inform people on job vacancies in the EU, found at www.eurescyprus.eu. More about the Erasmus Plus initiative can be found at www.ec.europa.eu/education

Rejuvenated Australia paceman Mitchell Johnson blitzed England with a haul of five for 42 to lead his country to an emphatic 381-run victory in the first Ashes test on Sunday.

It was a first win in 10 tests for Australia after losing a series 4-0 in India and another in England 3-0 this year, and a first triumph in eight Ashes contests since the Perth test in 2010.

The weather, which delayed play twice for more than two hours, at one stage looked like extending the sometimes fractious contest into a fifth day before Johnson stepped up to polish off the final English batsmen in the Gabba twilight.

England’s hopes of any kind of result at Brisbane had been slim at best when they were set a record 561 to win and lost two second innings wickets for only 24 runs on Saturday evening.

They were shattered when the dismissal of captain Alastair Cook for 65 triggered a collapse from 142 for four to 160 for eight in the 45 minutes between the two weather disruptions.

The victory was a confirmation of a renewed sense of confidence in the Australia team after a miserable year and will strengthen their belief that they can stop England winning a fourth successive Ashes series.

“As a team, we’ve copped a fair bit of criticism of late, and our performances have probably deserved that,” said Australia captain Michael Clarke.

“The win is very important, very special to us, it’s a great way to start the series.

“We’ll enjoy it, no doubt about that, but we’re seven or eight days away from the second test match and we know England will come back harder.”

Left-arm quick Johnson, who took 4-61 as the tourists were skittled for 136 in their first innings and contributed 103 runs with the bat, was named Man of the Match after claiming his eighth test five-wicket haul.

Cook said England would regroup and come out fighting in the second test in Adelaide but needed to take a long, hard look at how they dealt with Johnson.

“We’re going to have to be really honest with ourselves about how we go about trying to play him,” he said.

“We can’t brush the issue, he’s hurt us in this game and we’re going to come back and show our ability in the next game.”

“It’s just one loss, it’s a five-match test series so there’s plenty of time to fight back. We’ve done it before.”

England made a reasonable start to the day but Kevin Pietersen (26) and Ian Bell (32) lost their wickets with shots they need not have played.

As in the first innings when England lost six wickets for nine runs in one spell, though, it was spinner Nathan Lyon (2-46) who really got the ball rolling for the hosts.

HAILSTORM BEFORE COLLAPSE

Cook, who scored 235 not out in his second innings in the last Ashes test at the Gabba, had played a composed and defiant innings with just three boundaries before a dramatic hailstorm forced the players off the field.

Six balls after the resumption, Lyon got a little bit of extra bounce out of the surface and Cook caught a top edge with an attempted cut with Brad Haddin taking the catch behind the wickets.

England were only able to add only six runs for the next three wickets with Matt Prior (4), Stuart Broad (4) and Graeme Swann (0) quickly following their captain back to the pavilion.

Lyon, who later got his first chance to lead Australia in the victory song despite being given the task last January, had Prior caught at leg slip by David Warner after just eight minutes in the middle.

A bullish Broad lasted just three deliveries and five minutes before he got the faintest of touches to a Johnson delivery which again Haddin snaffled up.

Swann lasted just two balls before a meek fend at a Johnson snorter saw the ball fly into the hands of a diving Steve Smith in the slips.

England regrouped sufficiently to survive until the rain started falling again but the storm passed reasonably quickly and the players were back out with an hour of play remaining.

Chris Tremlett blocked for seven runs until a rising Ryan Harris ball came off the splint of his bat into the hands of George Bailey at short leg.

That left Joe Root (26 not out) and James Anderson as England’s last two batsmen and fittingly it was Johnson who dealt the coup de grace by dismissing his fellow quick caught and bowled to trigger the celebrations.

“To get a five-for in a test match in an Ashes series is unbelievable feeling,” said Johnson, who has been lampooned in song for the last four years by England’s Barmy Army of fans.

“All the boys just racing in and getting in a huddle was a great celebration for us. It was just a great moment, something I’ll never forget.

“We need to celebrate tonight because it has been a while.”

Rampant Manchester City shredded the Premier League’s meanest defence with a 6-0 thrashing of Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday while Manchester United’s surge up the table stalled after a 2-2 draw at Cardiff City.

Sergio Aguero and Jesus Navas struck twice for City who have scored 13 goals in their last two home games. Hapless Tottenham conceded as many in one match as they had in their previous 11 league outings.

A sixth home win in six put Manuel Pellegrini’s team in fourth place on 22 points. United were poised to move above them when they led Cardiff in south Wales with goals from Wayne Rooney and Patrice Evra.

The visitors were then denied a fourth consecutive league victory when Kim bo-Kyung’s late header earned Cardiff a deserved share of the spoils to leave United in sixth spot with 21 points, seven behind leaders Arsenal.

Oddly Tottenham enjoyed territorial superiority against City but having fallen behind after 15 seconds they were ripped apart by a home side bursting with goalscoring potential.

City have scored 34 league goals already this season and manager Pellegrini was glowing in his praise.

“It’s not normal to win by six goals against a strong team like Tottenham. I think today we played really well, not just attacking but defending,” he said.

“Spurs have very important players in attack so to not concede is very good.”

City were gifted the lead staright from the kickoff when Tottenham played the ball back to Hugo Lloris but the France keeper hit his clearance straight to Aguero.

Lloris, playing for Spurs for the time since suffering concussion against Everton at the start of the month, parried the Argentine striker’s effort but the ball rolled to Navas whose chip curled over the out-of-position keeper.

It was the second fastest goal of the season after the wind-assisted one scored by Stoke City goalkeeper Asmir Begovic against Southampton in 13 seconds.

Tottenham’s afternoon got steadily worse as they slumped to their heaviest league defeat since a 7-1 mauling at Newcastle United in 1996.

“It was a difficult start for us after that. Everything you had in mind goes down the drain,” said Tottenham’s stunned manager Andre Villas-Boas, in charge for the 50th league game.

“Everything went bad for us from being one of the best defences in the country to suffering six goals. There’s not a lot we can say. City were excellent, we were extremely poor today and paid a heavy price.”

Another poor clearance by Lloris led to the second goal after 34 minutes when Younes Kaboul’s clearance from Aguero’s shot cannoned in off Tottenham midfielder Sandro.

Aguero’s deft finish just before halftime effectively killed off Spurs and when he and Alvaro Negredo both produced superb finishes early in the second half the Londoners were in danger of suffering their worst Premier League defeat.

Villas-Boas gave striker Emmanuel Adebayor his first appearance of the season after the break but Tottenham’s goal-shy attack rarely threatened City goalkeeper Costel Pantilimon, again selected in place of England’s Joe Hart.

Navas ran through alone to complete the rout in stoppage-time.

While City appear to be on the up despite some poor away results, Tottenham, who have managed a meagre nine goals in 12 league games, have slipped to ninth with 20 points.

Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel won the Brazilian Grand Prix on Sunday to chalk up a record ninth victory in a row, and 13th of the Formula One season.

Australian team mate Mark Webber bowed out of the sport with second place, anchoring a Red Bull one-two in his 215th and final race for the champions, with Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso third.

Vettel is the first driver to win nine successive races in a single season although Italian Alberto Ascari strung together nine in a row over two campaigns in 1952-53.

The 26-year-old German’s victory equalled compatriot Michael Schumacher’s 2004 record with Ferrari of 13 wins in a season.

Vettel and Red Bull had secured their fourth successive drivers’ and constructors’ titles last month.

Driver and constructor standings 

Drivers Points 

1. Sebastian Vettel (Germany) Red Bull 397
2. Fernando Alonso (Spain) Ferrari 242
3. Mark Webber (Australia) Red Bull 199
4. Lewis Hamilton (Britain) Mercedes 189
5. Kimi Raikkonen (Finland) Lotus 183
6. Nico Rosberg (Germany) Mercedes 171
7. Romain Grosjean (France) Lotus 132
8. Felipe Massa (Brazil) Ferrari 112
9. Jenson Button (Britain) McLaren 73
10. Nico Huelkenberg (Germany) Sauber 51
11. Sergio Perez (Mexico) McLaren 49
12. Paul Di Resta (Britain) Force India 48
13. Adrian Sutil (Germany) Force India 29
14. Daniel Ricciardo (Australia) Toro Rosso 20
15. Jean-Eric Vergne (France) Toro Rosso 13
16. Esteban Gutierrez (Mexico) Sauber 6
17. Valtteri Bottas (Finland) Williams 4
18. Pastor Maldonado (Venezuela) Williams 1
19. Jules Bianchi (France) Marussia 0
20. Charles Pic (France) Caterham 0
21. Heikki Kovalainen (Finland) Lotus 0
22. Giedo van der Garde (Netherlands) Caterham 0
23. Max Chilton (Britain) Marussia 0

Constructors Points

1. RedBull – Renault 596
2. Mercedes 360
3. Ferrari 354
4. Lotus – Renault 315
5. McLaren 122
6. Force India – Mercedes 77
7. Sauber – Ferrari 57
8. Toro Rosso – Ferrari 33
9. Williams – Renault 5
10. Marussia – Cosworth 0
11. Caterham – Renault 0

By Paolo Biondi

Silvio Berlusconi’s party will vote against the government in a confidence vote over the 2014 budget and will announce its withdrawal from the ruling coalition, a source in his Forza Italia party said on Tuesday.

Prime Minister Enrico Letta is expected to survive without Berlusconi’s support, but the vote has brought the clash between the two to a head a day before the Senate is expected to strip the four-time premier of his parliamentary seat after his August tax-fraud conviction.

A broad left-right coalition, formed after February’s deadlocked national election, has backed Letta since April. Berlusconi, however, prompted a split in his party when he tried and failed to bring down the government last month.

The rift has left 30 centre-right senators and 27 deputies supporting the government, which is enough to guarantee its survival at a vote scheduled to happen after 9 pm (2000 GMT).

The coalition government “has failed in all its missions,” media magnate Berlusconi said during an interview with one of his TV channels.

The budget, the object of intense negotiations between coalition partners, includes some tax cuts on labour costs but the European Commission has warned it might not achieve debt reduction targets.

European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso called Berlusconi on Tuesday to urge him to remain by Letta’s side, but his plea probably fell on deaf ears, a Forza Italia lawmaker told Reuters.

Tensions are running high ahead of a bid to expel the four-time premier from the Senate. The vote, for which Berlusconi has called street rallies to protest, is expected late on Wednesday.

If ejected from parliament, Berlusconi will lose immunity from arrest and from being wiretapped by investigators as he faces at least two other criminal probes and appeals a conviction for paying for sex with an underage prostitute.

Confidence votes limit the scope for time-consuming amendments and are regularly called to speed legislation. It is just one part of the budget’s passage through parliament, which must be completed by the end of the year.

By Naomi O’Leary

Pope Francis attacked unfettered capitalism as “a new tyranny” and beseeched global leaders to fight poverty and growing inequality, in a document on Tuesday setting out a platform for his papacy and calling for a renewal of the Catholic Church.

The 84-page document, known as an apostolic exhortation, was the first major work he has authored alone as pope and makes official many views he has aired in sermons and remarks since he became the first non-European pontiff in 1,300 years in March.

In it, Francis went further than previous comments criticising the global economic system, attacking the “idolatry of money”, and urged politicians to “attack the structural causes of inequality” and strive to provide work, healthcare and education to all citizens.

He also called on rich people to share their wealth. “Just as the commandment ‘Thou shalt not kill’ sets a clear limit in order to safeguard the value of human life, today we also have to say ‘thou shalt not’ to an economy of exclusion and inequality. Such an economy kills,” Francis wrote in the document issued on Tuesday.

“How can it be that it is not a news item when an elderly homeless person dies of exposure, but it is news when the stock market loses 2 points?”

The pope said renewal of the Church could not be put off and said the Vatican and its entrenched hierarchy “also need to hear the call to pastoral conversion”.

“I prefer a Church which is bruised, hurting and dirty because it has been out on the streets, rather than a Church which is unhealthy from being confined and from clinging to its own security,” he wrote.

Italian theologian Massimo Faggioli greeted the work as “the manifesto of Francis” while veteran Vatican analyst John Thavis called it a “Magna Carta for church reform”.

“The message on poverty sets Pope Francis on a collision course with neo-liberal Catholic thought, especially in the United States,” said Faggioli, an expert on the Second Vatican Council and reform in the Catholic Church.

Other Catholic analysts added that progressive streams in the Church would bristle at the document’s rejection of women priests, though it leaves open the door to women taking other “decision-making” positions in the Church.

SIMPLE STYLE

In July, Francis finished an encyclical begun by Pope Benedict but he made clear that it was largely the work of his predecessor, who resigned in February.

Called “Evangelii Gaudium” (The Joy of the Gospel), the exhortation is presented in Francis’ simple preaching style, distinct from the more academic writings of former popes, and stresses the Church’s central mission of spreading the gospel.

A meditation on how to revitalise a Church suffering encroaching secularisation in the West, the exhortation echoed the zeal often heard from evangelical Protestants who have won over disaffected Catholics in the pope’s native Latin America.

In it, economic inequality features as one of the issues Francis is most concerned about, and the 76-year-old pontiff calls for an overhaul of the financial system and warns that unequal distribution of wealth inevitably leads to violence.

Denying it was simple populism, he called for action “beyond a simple welfare mentality” and added: “I beg the Lord to grant us more politicians who are genuinely disturbed by the state of society, the people, the lives of the poor.”

Since his election, Francis has set an example for austerity in the Church, living in a Vatican guest house rather than the ornate Apostolic Palace, travelling in a Ford Focus, and last month suspending a bishop who spent millions of euros on his luxurious residence.

He chose to be called “Francis” after the medieval Italian saint of the same name famed for choosing a life of poverty.

Munich Cardinal Reinhard Marx, one of eight special papal advisers, said the pope aimed his criticism at modern society “but also at the Church itself, which is always tempted to look inward and betray its mission of evangelisation”.

Stressing cooperation among religions, Francis quoted the late Pope John Paul II’s idea that the papacy might be reshaped to promote closer ties with other Christian churches and noted lessons Rome could learn from the Orthodox such as “synodality” or decentralised leadership.

He praised cooperation with Jews and Muslims and urged Islamic countries to guarantee their Christian minorities the same religious freedom as Muslims enjoy in the West.