THE overtime ban by the port workers that caused big losses to the economy and was lifted yesterday, is a reminder of the absurd way things operate in the public sector. When the ban was in place, Limassol port would shut down at 1.30pm and ships would not be allowed to leave. If it was Friday lunch-time, a ship would have to wait until Monday morning, when the port workers returned to work, in order to leave Limassol. Inevitably, ships had been avoiding using Limassol port and will carry on doing so.

What is astonishing is that ports authority staff work office hours, and anything they do in the afternoon or in the evening is paid as overtime. In the past, overtime work was paid double the daily rate and triple on Sundays, but the rates have been drastically cut by the government this year – in line with the rest of the public sector. The unions imposed the overtime ban in protest against the cuts. They called off the measure just before last weekend in the hope that talks with the government would reduce the cuts. Yesterday, the ban was in place again only to be lifted in the afternoon when both sides agreed to start month-long talks next week.

Only in a country like Cyprus that is run by unions could there have been such a stupid arrangement with regard to overtime in services that should work round the clock, like hospitals, the police force and the fire brigade. Instead, staff in these services work public sector office hours – until 2.30pm – and any work after that is paid overtime.

This is why the government has an extortionate bill to pay every year for public sector overtime. The finance minister reduced the overtime rates for everyone in this year’s budget and was faced by a storm of protests by nurses, doctors, policemen and port workers. Of course, the rational thing to do was to have introduced a shift system at all these places and paid overtime only for work done on public holidays and Sundays. A small allowance could be given as compensation to workers who did shifts at unsociable hours, but nothing more.

The existing system also encourages workers to be inefficient and unproductive during office hours so they would have to complete their work on overtime pay. Customs officials, for instance, refuse to inspect containers in the morning because in the afternoons they are paid overtime – cash up front – by the person or business hiring them. Nobody was bothered that the unnecessary extra cost of overtime for custom officials and port workers was passed on to the consumer.

The cuts in overtime are not a solution. The only sensible solution is for the government to introduce a shift system at all these organisations. It would cut costs for the state and for businesses in one go and for good. What a shame the Troika did not make the introduction of the shift system a provision of the MoU. If the port workers were going to harm the economy anyway, it may as well have been over the shift system than over the rate of overtime pay.

By Stefanos Evripidou

FOREIGN Minister Ioannis Kasoulides said yesterday there was suspicion that one or two of the 18 Ukrainians targeted by the EU with sanctions for embezzlement of public funds could have assets in Cyprus.

Kasoulides said a meeting was held at the ministry yesterday with the relevant authorities, including the Central Bank and Unit for Combating Money Laundering (MOKAS), to determine whether Cyprus needed to take action and freeze the assets of any of the 18 singled out on suspicion of embezzlement of Ukrainian state funds.

The EU Council decided earlier this week to proceed with an immediate freezing of funds and economic resources of 18 prominent figures in the old guard of the Ukrainian leadership identified as responsible for the misappropriation of Ukrainian state funds and their illegal transfer outside Ukraine.

The decision came into effect as of March 6, 2014. The list of 18 has been made public in the Official Journal of the EU under Council Regulation (EU) No 208/2014, and can be found online.

It includes former Ukrainian President Victor Yanukovych and his two sons, former Prime Minister Mykola Azarov and his son, the former Prosecutor General and his son, four former ministers, and the former head of the Security Service.

Article 2 of the Regulation states that all funds and economic resources belonging to, owned, held or controlled by any natural or legal person, entity or body listed in Annex I of the document shall be frozen.

Asked yesterday if any of the 18 persons identified were related to Cyprus in any way, Kasoulides said there were possibly one or two cases connected to Cyprus.

“If there are any such cases… we are obliged to comply with the EU decision. In any case, we should be the last ones to be blamed for receiving stolen items. But any step requires court proceedings. It cannot be an arbitrary act,” he said.

A statement released after yesterday’s meeting at the foreign ministry said the relevant departments and authorities of Cyprus were “in full coordination, taking all appropriate actions and making all necessary checks to ensure compliance” with the EU decision.

The foreign minister highlighted that for Cyprus, the official government of Ukraine was the temporary one currently in place in Kiev.

“It is not for us to judge its constitutionality. Our hope is not to have a fait accompli in Crimea which will have consequences on the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine.
“As a country which has also suffered an attack on its own territorial integrity, we cannot support this.”

He added that Cyprus was sticking to the joint decisions of the EU on the Ukrainian crisis while keeping a low profile.

European leaders also announced on Thursday plans to suspend visa talks with Moscow and EU attendance to the G8 Summit in Sochi. A second phase of sanctions could include travel bans and a freeze of Russian assets if Moscow failed to sit at the negotiating table with the Ukrainians.

Kasoulides sought to allay fears that Russian tourism to Cyprus would be affected, drawing a distinction between the phased sanctions on Russia and the targeted sanctions on Ukrainian individuals connected to the Yanukovych regime, who are reasonably suspected of embezzlement of public money, “which belongs to Ukraine’s citizens and must be returned”.

Regarding the visa talks between the EU and Russia, the aim is to eventually abolish visa requirements on both sides.

“The measure taken by the EU is to freeze this dialogue (with Russia). It does not change anything regarding the existing situation, where through a certain mechanism, Russian visitors can receive visas and come to Cyprus. There is no issue of prohibiting or cutting economic relations between EU countries and Russia,” he said.

Cyprus enjoys historically close political and economic ties with Russia, seen by the EU and US as the aggressor in the Ukraine crisis. Russia has often acted as a bulwark in the UN Security Council against Anglo-American moves seen in the past as unfriendly towards the Cypriot government.

Since the election of President Nicos Anastasiades, there has been an evident shift in Cyprus’ foreign policy to the West, with the government’s stated intention being membership of NATO’s Partnership for Peace programme (PfP).

Until now, this was not seen as a zero sum game for Russia, also a PfP member. The former Soviet Union member still enjoys close economic ties with Cyprus and makes use of the island’s ports and airports occasionally for military purposes.

However, the manner in which Russian forces took over Ukrainian bases and effectively shut out the central government from the Crimea, citing the need to protect Russian-speaking citizens of the area smacked too much of the pretext given by Turkey in 1974 to invade and occupy the island’s northern third.

After signing up to a joint EU statement condemning Russia’s actions, Cyprus came out on March 4 stating clearly its support for Ukraine’s territorial integrity and sovereignty.

Meanwhile, international offshore law firm Harneys released a statement yesterday saying it will host a live webcast on Tuesday, March 11, at 4 pm local time, during which a panel of experts will provide legal analysis of the latest developments concerning economic and other sanctions against Ukraine and Russia, with particular focus on how such sanctions could impact business interests in Cyprus and the British Virgin Islands (BVI).

The panel will be hosted by the firm’s chairman, Peter Tarn who said: “Harneys is closely monitoring the evolving situation in Ukraine and Russia. With BVI and Cyprus providing the most popular corporate structures for investments involving Russia and the West, the imposition of sanctions could have significant impact on a wide range of business interests.”

For more information about Tuesday’s webcast and to register, visit the Harneys website: http://www.harneys.com/publications/webinars/ukraine-russia-and-the-impacts-of-sanctions-on-ifcs

By Colleen Jenkins

A US Army general twice forced a female captain to engage in oral sex when she tried to break off their illicit sexual relationship during their deployment in Afghanistanin 2011, the woman said during an emotional account on Friday at his military trial.

The junior officer testified that Brigadier General Jeffrey Sinclair grabbed her by the back of the neck and sexually assaulted her after she tried to explain she was fed up with their adulterous affair and needed to move on.

“He pushed me down,” she said through tears. “I felt like I had no control at all over my own body.”

Her allegations are the basis of a forcible sodomy charge that could send the 51-year-old general to prison for life. Sinclair is also accused of grabbing her genitalia against her will and of having sex with her in public places, including a parking lot in Germany and military offices in Afghanistan.

The general, who is married, denies sexually assaulting the captain 17 years his junior and says the relationship was consensual, although inappropriate by military standards.

The rare court-martial of a high-ranking US military official is unfolding in Fort Bragg, North Carolina, amid a growing debate among US lawmakers over how best to curb sexual assault in the military.

A government prosecutor told a jury panel of five two-star generals that Sinclair abused his rank and power to threaten the captain to stay in an intimate relationship that spanned three years and two war zones.

“It involves a lot of consensual sex,” the lead prosecutor, Lieutenant Colonel Robert Stelle, said during opening statements on Friday. But “this is a case where non-consensual sex was used as an instrument of control.”

Defense attorney Ellen Brotman read aloud excerpts from the female captain’s journal that the lawyer said help prove the liaison was based on mutual affection, not coercion, and remained consensual from beginning to end.

“You will see that this case is nothing more than a workplace affair,” Brotman told jurors, adding the captain’s fear was that Sinclair would never leave his wife.

The identity of the captain, a military intelligence officer, is being withheld by Reuters due to the nature of the charges.

The captain, 34, recalled on the witness stand her first physical encounter with Sinclair, saying he invited her into his private quarters in Iraq in 2009, asked her to take down her hair and caressed her face.

“I had developed a very strong attraction for him,” she said. “On the one hand, I’m thinking how amazing it feels, but on the other hand, this is my brigade commander.”

The captain, now stationed in Arizona, did not meet Sinclair’s gaze during her testimony, during which the general sometimes shook his head and looked annoyed.

The relationship went through volatile highs and lows, and the captain said her frustration and mistrust grew. She said Sinclair once threatened, after they had sex, to kill her if she told his wife or anyone else about the affair.

Another time, at a hotel in Arizona, they had sex against her will on a balcony and Sinclair later grabbed her by the throat when she became upset and tried to leave, she testified.

After court, Sinclair’s attorneys said that account contradicted her previous descriptions of the hotel meeting. In a journal entry, she wrote that they had a huge fight over a change in his travel plans but said, “It was so wonderful to be with him again though.”

The captain testified that she stayed involved with Sinclair because she felt emotionally connected and worried about how ending it would affect her military career. She did not immediately report him to superior officers after the alleged sex crimes.

“I knew if I said anything that it would be my word against his and nobody would believe me,” she said. “I had no way out.”

When she told Sinclair of her desperation, she said he texted her, “Get a grip.”

On Thursday, Sinclair, a one-star general, pleaded guilty to lesser offenses that carry a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison and possible dismissal from the Army.

He admitted to having an extramarital affair with the captain as well as asking other junior female officers for nude photos and viewing pornography while deployed.

The charges saw him stripped of command in southern Afghanistan in May 2012 and sent back to Fort Bragg, where he remains on active duty. His wife is not attending the trial.

Sinclair’s attorneys said the captain’s testimony provided new fodder for their cross-examination of her on Monday.

“It was an interesting story we heard,” said lead defence attorney Richard Scheff. “Unfortunately, it’s fiction.”

By Anuradha Raghu and Nguyen Phuong Linh

A MALAYSIA AIRLINES flight carrying 227 passengers and 12 crew went missing in area near the South China Sea on Saturday as it flew from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing and was presumed to have crashed.

There were no reports of bad weather and no sign why the Boeing 777-200ER, powered by Rolls-Royce Trent engines, would have vanished from radar screens about an hour after it took off.

By nightfall in the region, there were no signs of the plane or any wreckage, some 17 hours after it went missing.

A large number of planes and ships from several countries were scouring the area where the plane last made contact, about halfway between Malaysia and the southern tip of Vietnam.

“The search and rescue operations will continue as long as necessary,” Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak told reporters in Kuala Lumpur. He said 15 air force aircraft, six navy ships and three coast guard vessels had been pressed into service by Malaysia.

China and the Philippines have sent ships to a region near the South China Sea to help. The United States, the Philippines and Singapore also dispatched military planes to help in the search.

China has also put other ships and aircraft on standby, said Transport Minister Yang Chuantang.

Vietnamese state media, quoting a senior naval official, had reported that the plane had crashed offsouth Vietnam. Malaysia‘s transport minister later denied any crash scene had been identified.

“We are doing everything in our power to locate the plane. We are doing everything we can to ensure every possible angle has been addressed,” Transport Minister Hishamuddin Hussein told reporters near the Kuala Lumpur International Airport.

“We are looking for accurate information from the Malaysian military. They are waiting for information from the Vietnamese side,” he said.

Vietnamese Admiral Ngo Van Phat later qualified his earlier remarks about a crash site having been identified and told Reuters he was referring to a presumed location beneath the plane’s flight path, using information supplied by Malaysia.

A crash, if confirmed, would likely mark the U.S.-built airliner’s deadliest incident since entering service 19 years ago.

The plane, aged over 11 years, disappeared without giving a distress signal – a chilling echo of an Air France flight that crashed into the South Atlantic on June 1, 2009, killing all 228 people on board. It vanished for hours and wreckage was found only two days later.

Search and rescue vessels from the Malaysian maritime enforcement agency reached the area where the plane last made contact at about 4:30 p.m. local time (0830 GMT) but saw no sign of wreckage, a Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency told Reuters.

Flight MH370 last had contact with air traffic controllers 120 nautical miles off the east coast of the Malaysian town of Kota Bharu, Malaysia Airlines chief executive Ahmad Jauhari Yahya said in a statement.

The airline said people from 14 nationalities were among the 227 passengers, including at least at least 152 Chinese, 38 Malaysians, seven Indonesians, six Australians, five Indians, four French and three Americans.

“The Australian government fears the worst for those aboard missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370,” a spokeswoman for Australia‘s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said.

Flight tracking website flightaware.com showed the plane flew northeast over Malaysia after takeoff and climbed to an altitude of 35,000 feet. The flight vanished from the website’s tracking records a minute later while it was still climbing.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told reporters in Beijing that China was “extremely worried” about the fate of the plane and those on board.

Chinese relatives of passengers angrily accused the airline of keeping them in the dark, while state media criticised the carrier’s poor response.

“There’s no one from the company here, we can’t find a single person. They’ve just shut us in this room and told us to wait,” said one middle-aged man at a hotel near Beijing airport where the relatives were taken.

“We want someone to show their face. They haven’t even given us the passenger list,” he said.

Another relative, trying to evade a throng of reporters, muttered: “They’re treating us worse than dogs.”

In Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Airlines told passengers’ next of kin to come to the international airport with their passports to prepare to fly to the crash site, which has still not been identified.

About 20-30 families were being kept in a holding room at the airport, where they were being guarded by security officials and kept away from reporters.

The flight left Kuala Lumpur around 12:40 a.m. (1640 GMT Friday) and was due to land in the Chinese capital at 6:30 a.m. (2230 GMT Friday) the same day.

Malaysia Airlines has one of the best safety records among full-service carriers in the Asia-Pacific region.

It identified the pilot of MH370 as Captain Zaharie Ahmad Shah, a 53-year-old Malaysian who joined the carrier in 1981 and has 18,365 hours of flight experience.

Chinese state media said 24 Chinese artists and family members, who were in Kuala Lumpur for an art exchange programme, were aboard. The Sichuan provincial government said Zhang Jinquan, a well-known calligrapher, was on the flight.

If it is confirmed that the plane crashed, the loss would mark the second fatal accident involving a Boeing 777 in less than a year and by far the worst since the jet entered service in 1995.

An Asiana Airlines Boeing 777-200ER crash-landed in San Francisco in July 2013, killing three passengers and injuring more than 180.

Boeing said it was monitoring the situation but had no further comment. The flight was operating as aChina Southern Airlines codeshare.

A PERSON, sought in connection with a car found on March 2 containing weapons and explosives and investigated by British Sovereign Base Authorities (SBA) police, was arrested in a hotel in Limassol on Friday.

A police spokesman said that following a search of the hotel room, 15 grams of a crystallised substance – believed to be methamphetamine – were found, as well as one gram of cannabis and the amount of €170 in cash.

A further search of the detainee’s car revealed a pistol with a magazine and five bullets.

A STORE in Larnaca was broken into and merchandise worth approximately €20,000 was stolen early on Saturday.

A police spokesman said that the store’s alarm went off at 05:40 am and subsequent investigation found that roughly 100 mobile phones and 40 tablet computers had been stolen.

The total value of the stolen goods was estimated at approximately €20,000.

A FIRE early on Saturday seriously damaged a car belonging to a 70-year-old man in Limassol. No one was injured.

A police spokesman said that the fire was reported at 04:30 am on Saturday, while the car was parked outside the man’s house.

The fire was extinguished by the fire brigade, but not before causing severe damage to the front of the car. Police are investigating the cause of the fire.

By Angelos Anastasiou

A FIRE which broke out in the home of a Turkish Cypriot family in Kato Arodes early Saturday morning while they were away could be part of a personal crusade against the extended family as a nearby house, belonging to the family of the homeowner of Saturday’s blaze, was arsoned a few weeks ago.

On February 13, a fire was reported in a house owned by a 35-year-old man in Kato Arodes while the owner and his family had been visiting the occupied areas. Police ruled out the possibility of accident as the house had been broken into through the back door and four separate fires were set inside. The fires caused extensive damage to the inside of the house, burning drapes, furniture and walls.

Early on Saturday morning another fire was reported in Kato Arodes, in similar circumstances to those of the February fire. The owner – the first homeowner’s father-in-law – and his family had been away visiting relatives in the occupied area, when the house was burgled and set alight.

The two Turkish Cypriot families are residents of the Republic who were granted the properties by the government as part of its refugee housing scheme following the 1974 Turkish invasion.

Kato Arodes community leader Theodosis Mavrommatis confirmed that the family connection suggests a personal aspect, but could not imagine a possible motive.

“These people are harmless and quiet, they never bother anyone. I can’t imagine what grievance one may have against them,” he said.

But reports by local residents suggested the possibility of a personal dispute with two brothers from a neighbouring village, one of whom was recently arrested by police in a major drugs bust and is now serving jail time.

“They both think that the Turkish Cypriot was somehow involved in his arrest,” said a resident.

The two brothers had previously clashed with the Turkish Cypriot over bills they had allegedly left unpaid at his car body shop, causing the brothers to suspect him of going to the police as payback, the resident said.

The pro-Russia prime minister of Ukraine‘s Crimea peninsula has defended a decision to hold a referendum on whether the region should join Russia, saying on Saturday that “no one” could cancel the voting.

On Thursday, Crimea’s parliament, dominated by ethnic Russians, voted to join Russia and set a referendum for March 16, escalating the crisis.

The conflict resulted from the overthrow last month of President Viktor Yanukovich after protests in Kiev that led to violence.

European Union leaders and the U.S. President Barack Obama have said the referendum plan is illegitimate and would violate Ukraine’s constitution.

But Sergei Aksyonov said the local government would go ahead with the public vote.

“The Supreme Council deputies of Crimea have univocally fulfilled the decision of the Crimeans, they voted for holding the referendum on March 16, and no one is able to cancel it,” he was quoted by Itar-Tass state news agency as saying to Russian television.

He said the referendum was called at such short notice to “avoid provocations, as the situation in Ukraine is quite tense”.

ENERGY minister Giorgos Lakkotrypis reaffirmed the government’s commitment to constructing a natural gas liquefaction terminal on Saturday, and noted that the new cabinet will be called on to make very important decisions.

Commenting on criticism voiced earlier by his predecessor Neoklis Sylikiotis, Lakkotrypis said that “the strategy for exploiting our natural gas reserves remains focused on constructing the liquefaction terminal.”

He conceded that “we are slightly off course over the past six weeks due to the internal crisis”, but clarified that “under no circumstances does that change our planning, which originates from the President.”

Lakkotrypis said that the consultations with Noble have “proceeded to a great extent”, and added that the new cabinet, created in the wake of DIKO’s withdrawal from the ruling coalition, will be called on to make very important decisions.

“As soon as a new cabinet has been installed, decisions will be made both regarding the liquefaction terminal and the hydrocarbons company.”

Although he conceded that the ministry is looking into alternatives, Lakkotrypis denied that a gas pipeline to Turkey is an option.

“I must stress that a pipeline to Turkey is not on the table, because without a solution to the Cyprus problem it cannot be examined,” he said.

By Zoe Christodoulides

IF YOU happen to be a regular user of Facebook, then it’s more than likely that you’ve come across pictures of friends, acquaintances or well known local personalities holding up a sign that boldly reads: ‘I Am The Economy’.

This is no random fad. The images are all part of an attempt to break a world record in the midst of the current economic crisis as public consciousness is stirred and people are urged to take control of their own future.

An initiative kick-started by Constantinos Arkadiou – a 28-year-old copywriter – the project now being coordinated in collaboration with the Kafene non-profit organisation aims to create the world’s largest photo collage recognised by the Guinness World Records.

In order to break the record, the final piece is to measure 10,000 square metres, and Constantinos is determined to collect a whopping 30,000 pictures. And as more and more people hold up the stark sign before the lens, it marks an attempt to spread the word that the future of the Cypriot economy lies in all of our hands; from graduates and young professionals to artists, builders, butchers, designers and bankers. Some pose in their workspaces, others smile for the camera in the comfort of their own homes, still others pose while sitting back at their favourite cafe.

The idea of the biggest collage in the world is one that came to mind following last year’s traumatic bailout.

“Like so many of us, I was rather numb after that experience,” recalls Constantinos. “I felt that it is in our hands to do something to create change. It’s about the individual taking action to help themselves and then everyone coming together as a collective whole.”

Acting as a reminder that change can come from a grass roots level rather than simply left in the hands of the government or big corporations, Constantinos intends the whole endeavour to become a global phenomenon with resonance with people across the world, particularly in countries that are also suffering from a bad economic climate.

The initiative sprung into action before Christmas, starting with a pop-up shop down Makarios Avenue in Nicosia where Constantinos began snapping away at people who wished to take a picture of themselves with the sign, along with family and friends who first supported the cause.

Having teamed up with the Kafene non-profit organisation for the ‘I Am The Economy’ endeavour, the group is intent on helping on a wider scale, beyond this photographic project, by giving young professionals insight and direction when it comes to set up their own business, making investments, and generally encouraging locals to get the ball rolling in hard and trying times.

“My aim is not just to break the world record but for the message to really be a strong one, to make people think about how they can help bring about change, with each and every one of us playing a role in the wider picture,” says Constantinos. Once all pictures have been collected, the aim is for them to be printed and laid out in a prominent public space in the capital.

“I’ve been in contact with the NicosiaMunicipality and they are happy to collaborate. My idea is to cover part of the Venetian Walls, but whether that can actually be done remains to be seen. I am hopeful,” he says.

With close to 1000 pictures collected so far, the reaction from the general public has been a positive one, with people now sending pictures through on their own accord via the ‘I Am The Economy’ Facebook page, website and Twitter. “Most people feel that the sign represents them and they hold it proudly,” says Constantinos. “They might be a bit shy at first but they become more confident in front of the camera when they know they are having their picture taken for a cause they believe in.”

As the anniversary of last year’s bailout approaches, Constantinos and the Kafene group are busy organising an exhibition at the P.X .creative space in Nicosia between March 15 and 17 where members of the public will have the chance to catch a glimpse of the work of professional local photographers supporting ‘I Am The Economy’.

Exhibits aside, Constantinos urges everyone to do their bit by taking a picture of themselves with the sign, which can be downloaded and printed from the website.

“This is a serious message and we can all be part of it. This is about you taking a stance in front of the camera.”

Those that wish to take part in ‘I Am The Economy’ can download the I Am The Economy sign from www.iamtheeconomy.net, and the resulting pictures can be shared on the ‘I Am The Economy’ facebook page, twitter and Instagram using the hashtag #iamtheeconomy.

By Bejay Browne

AN AWARD-WINNING winery set in the heart of Paphos’ wine-producing region is in the midst of expanding its operations by opening a wine bar at its impressive new facility in time for Easter.

Vasilikon winery, a family run concern in Kathikas, has been producing wine for more than 20 years, winning a raft of top awards at international wine competitions.

Vasilikon winery, which is owned by three brothers – Heracles, Georgios and Yiannis Kyriakides – moved to the new, custom-built premises four years ago.

The new winery, with its stunning views across unspoiled countryside and down to the sea, also houses a wine museum, covers about 4,000m2 and includes the winery, wine cellar and the bottling room.

The winery, designed by Nicosia-based architect and family friend, Argyris Solomou, took six years to construct and is found in the Akamas Laona area of the Paphos district, set off the winding road leading from Peyia to Kathikas. The large building is impressive and combines traditional wine-making values with modern technology.

“Grape growing has been in our family for many years and when we all finished our studies, the three of us decided we wanted to create a winery in our vineyards,” said Yiannis Kyriakides.

The winemaker says the family currently has around 200 donums of vines and is always on the lookout for more, if the price is right.

“Now we have another nine thousand vines to plant and we are planning to make another three wines using a variety of Cypriot grapes, this will be within the next four years.”

Currently, four well-known, highly drinkable wines being produced by the winery – Vasilikon, Agios Onoufrios, Methy and Einalia Rose. The wines have won awards at numerous prestigious international competitions including: Challenge International Du Vin, Decanter World Wine awards, the Wine Products Council and Women and Wines of the world Monaco.

“We are pleased that our wines have been recognised at competitions all over the world. We are aiming to do this again this year, and will be entering all of the good competitions,” said Kyriakides.

Reception at Vasilikon

Kyriakides loves vines, wines and the entire wine making process and although the family has a number of people working with them, the wine maker oversees each step of the process and is often in the vineyards with his father.

Kyriakides said that the brothers have a close relationship and his wife and Georgios’ wife also both work in the business. The two women were responsible for interior design of the building.

“My wife studied accounting and George’s wife speaks excellent English and undertakes the reception duties and wine tasting,” he said.

The business is a truly family affair and looks set to be safely handed down to the next generation, as both of the brothers’ daughters are interested in wine making and are about to embark on oenologist studies abroad.

Wine bar at Vasilikon

Kyriakides says that the family believes more must be done to encourage younger generations to show an interest in a tradition which is a integral part of the Cypriot heritage.

“We need many more people to invest in vineyards in Cyprus and we also need more professional people to work them.”

The winery runs a very successful sideline catering to tourists of all nationalities who are travelling the wine route and locals who want to top up their wine stocks.

“We have had visitors from all over the world, they like to try our wines and buy them; they are also very interested in our wine museum.”

The museum was particularly important to Kyriakides who wanted to show how traditions have changed and preserve a piece of Cyprus history.

“I like old things, whether it’s wine-making machinery and tools or classic cars. I want to do it well and put the right pieces inside the museum.”

Wedding receptions for up to 200 guests can also be held at the stunning location, as well as other events and conferences. The wine bar which is kitted out and ready to go, is set to open in a matter of weeks, once the opening hours have been decided. Cold plates will be served alongside the family produced wine.

www.vasilikon.com

By Sam Holden

Two goals from late substitute Olivier Giroud and one apiece by Mesut Ozil and Mikel Arteta secured Arsenal’s place in the FA Cup semi-finals with a 4-1 win against Everton at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday.

Ozil gave Arsenal a seventh minute lead, after a precise through ball from Santi Cazorla but Everton equalised after a surging run from Ross Barkely resulted in a Romelu Lukaku tap-in after 32 minutes.

Arsenal regained the lead in the 68th minute after Gareth Barry tripped Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain in the box and Mikel Arteta converted the penalty.

Striker Olivier Giroud then came off the bench to score twice in two minutes, in the 83rd and 85th minutes, to keep Arsenal on course for their first trophy for nine years.

In an end-to-end cup tie it looked as though the visitors might force a replay but Arteta’s penalty was the turning point in the game, forcing Everton to push forward in search of another equaliser, leaving themselves open at the back.

The Spanish midfielder, who left Everton for Arsenal in August 2011, was forced to retake his initial penalty after Giroud encroached into the box and admitted it was a big moment for him against his former club.

“When I had to retake the penalty it was just about keeping my concentration level high,” Arteta told ITV after the game. “It was a massive moment and I’m just happy I scored.”

“We dominated the game and had the better chances but Everton showed their quality when they broke in the first half so overall we are happy to be at Wembley.”

Arsenal now enter the draw for the semi-finals at Wembley with high hopes of winning their first major trohpy in nine years. They won the FA Cup in 2005.

“It will be amazing if we can win it. We’re in the semi-final, have a good chance and want to do it,” Arteta said.

“I missed the final at Wembley with Everton (2009) when I was with them because of a cruciate injury so playing there in the semi-final will be a good moment for me.”

The rest of the FA Cup quarter finals will be played on Sunday.

Sheffield United host Charlton, while Sunderland travel to Hull City, and Manchester City welcome Wigan Athletic in a repeat of last year’s FA Cup final.

By James Ker-Lindsay

THIS WEEK saw the fiftieth anniversary of a true milestone in the history of the Cyprus problem – the establishment of UNFICYP, the United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus.

While the force is a fixture of the Cypriot political landscape, few now remember the difficult political circumstances surrounding its creation. It is a fascinating story that unfolded against the backdrop of the Cold War and British imperial decline.

The breakdown of the constitutional order in Cyprus, in December 1963, just three years after independence, sparked concern in many Western capitals. The emergence of a full scale civil war in Cyprus could have spilled over to Greece and Turkey, with potentially catastrophic implications for NATO unity.

In London, there was particular panic. Apart from the wider implications for the Western alliance, fighting on the island could threaten Britain’s military bases as well as the lives of the many British citizens still living in Cyprus.

Having hastily recalled ministers back from their Christmas holidays, the British government decided to take the lead on the creation of a peacekeeping mission composed of troops from Greece, Turkey and the United Kingdom, the three states that had undertaken to guarantee the island’s independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity under the terms of the island’s 1960 constitution.

However, from the very start, the mission – the Joint Truce Force (JTF) – ran into problems. The Turkish troops earmarked to participate had left their barracks to take up positions in Turkish Cypriot villages and neighbourhoods. They were not coaxed back. Without them, Athens made it clear that its forces on the island could not play a part in the operation. This effectively left Britain as the lone peacekeeper from day one.

Although the force carried out its duties to the best of its abilities, it was immediately apparent that Britain could not sustain such a major commitment indefinitely. Apart from its major presence in Germany, it was also dealing with its retreat from empire across the globe. Fighting several insurgencies and small wars elsewhere, it simply did not have the manpower to maintain a mission for more than a few months.

Frozen in time – UNFICYP has been patrolling the green line in Nicosia for 50 years

By late January, the pressure was starting to show. Although it was doing a good job calming tensions between the communities, many Greek Cypriots were starting to question the neutrality of the British army they had been fighting just a few years earlier. Meanwhile, a conference in London to try to broker a political agreement had failed. As a result, Turkey was showing increasing signs that it would take matters into its own hands and invade the island.

Faced with this, Britain scrambled to put together a new, more permanent peacekeeping force. One obvious option was to create a UN mission. However, the fear was that this would give the Soviet Union a say over developments. London therefore decided to explore the possibility of a force based around NATO. Cautious at first, Washington soon came to support the idea enthusiastically.

In contrast, the Greek Cypriot community, under the leadership of President Makarios, roundly rejected any talk of NATO involvement on the island. As they saw it, the organisation would always be inclined to side with Ankara given Turkey’s strategic position as the Western alliance’s most south-easterly flank. The presence of a NATO force would inevitably cement Turkish control over the island.

With growing pressure from London and Washington, Makarios played the Cold War card. In early February 1964, Nikita Khrushchev, the Soviet Premier, wrote to the three Guarantor Powers warning them against any interference in Cypriot affairs.

As its desperation increased, London now had no choice but to give up on the idea of a NATO force. Although a couple of other options were explored, including the idea of a Commonwealth Force, they failed to gain enough wider support. On February 15, and acting against the wishes of the United States, which still believed that an alternative route could be found, the United Kingdom gave up and submitted a request for a meeting of the Security Council to discuss the situation on the island.

Clearing mines from the buffer zone has been one of the UN military’s major tasks

The debates that took place in New York over the next two weeks or so were to have a profound effect on the nature of the Cyprus Problem. It was, for example, at this stage that the Greek Cypriot led administration was recognised as the legitimate government of the Republic of Cyprus. Most notably, it culminated in Security Council Resolution 186, passed on March 4, 1964, which established a mediating role for the UN – a role that essentially continues to this day – and the creation of UNFICYP. The first peace-keepers arrived in Cyprus on March 13.

One can only speculate what might have happened had a NATO force been introduced instead. It would certainly not have been beyond the realms of possibility that Cyprus could have been united with Greece, albeit with a large Turkish military presence on the island, or perhaps partitioned between Greece and Turkey. We will never know. However, what can be said for certain is that for a few weeks in early 1964, Cyprus became a frontline state in the Cold War and a visible symbol of Britain’s rapidly declining strength on the world stage.

Quite apart from anything else, UNFICYP is an enduring reminder of that long gone era.

James Ker-Lindsay is Senior Research Fellow at the London School of Economics. He is the author of ‘Britain and the Cyprus Crisis, 1963-1964’ and ‘The Cyprus Problem: What Everyone Needs to Know’, as well several other books on the modern history, politics and international relations of Cyprus. He is on Twitter @JamesKerLindsay

By Patroclos

BEING principled and sensitive souls, we Kyproullians were quite shocked by the totally hypocritical stance of the detested West, which includes our duplicitous EU partners, towards Mother Russia’s bloodless invasion and occupation of Crimea.

Mother Russia may have violated the territorial integrity and sovereignty (where have we heard that before?) of the Ukraine, but this was primarily a humanitarian operation aimed at protecting the ethnic Russians, who are the majority of Crimea’s 2.3 million population that was never under threat from anyone.

Our newspapers which reflect the sensitivities of the population were quick to point out the West’s disgusting hypocrisy. Simerini, the flag-bearer of high ideal and principles, wrote in Wednesday’s lead article that “the reactions of the US and EU to the intervention of Russia in Crimea, compared to the reactions until now, for the big crime committed by Turkey against Cyprus provoke feelings of disappointment, but also frustration for the hypocritical policy of these powers towards Cyprus.”

The paper points out indignantly that with regard to Turkey’s crime, “which constitutes a crime against humanity and continues for 40 years, the US, UK, EU and the whole western world not only failed to take a stand in support of the victim, but for many years now acquits Turkey and show tolerance….”

The West would have every reason to protest about Mother Russia’s behaviour if it had done the same in the case of Turkey, the paper argued and concluded: “The politics of hypocrisy, followed on issues of principle, is a boomerang that is already turning against the Western world.” This passionate hatred of the West, even by ultra-nationalist right wing papers, is the biggest achievement of AKEL’s propaganda machinery.

IT IS INTERESTING to note that Simerini referred to Putin’s invasion and occupation of Crimea, which will be followed by secession in week’s time, as an ‘intervention’. Strangely, it is the same term always used by Turkey to describe its invasion and occupation of Cyprus.

The editorial avoided condemning Mother Russia’s ‘intervention’ giving the impression that hypocrisy is a bigger crime, more deserving of a scathing attack than the conquest of another country’s sovereign territory. Perhaps the editorial writer did not realise that failing to condemn an invasion and occupation, because it was perpetrated by Mother Russia, might be construed as a bit hypocritical.

‘THE HYPOCRISY of the West’ was the headline of the AKEL mouthpiece Haravghi which felt duty-bound to point out the “supposed invasion by Russia in Crimea and elsewhere in the Ukraine, of course, has nothing to do with the truth.”

The commie rag also spoke of Mother Russia’s ‘intervention’ which it believed was fully justified. “It does what any other country would have done to protect its subjects, its citizens, its people. Why does Russia’s attempt to protect Russian citizens constitute expansionism but the open intervention of the West – over who will govern the country – is considered a lawful and acceptable act?”

Maybe it is considered expansionism because Ukraine’s sovereign territory has been taken over and will become part of the Russian Federation’s territory. Not even Turkey has done that in the north – at least not yet – but by Haravghi’s logic it has every right to be there and protect its subjects, its citizens, its people.

And anyone who claimed otherwise is as hypocritical as the West.

OUR GOVERNMENT, to its credit, betrayed Mother Russia by supporting the position adopted by the hypocrites of the EU. If we still had comrade Tof as our president there was no way he would have stood for this hypocrisy and would have opposed any condemnation of Moscow by the European Council.

PRINCIPLED Paphite demagogue Yiorkos Lillikas took the stand he believed would win him votes. He fully supported Mother Russia’s invasion and occupation and issued a stern warning to Nik’s government.

“The Cyprus government must in no way agree to the imposition of any sanctions against Russia. At this moment Cyprus needs allies and it is imperative that we restore our relations with Russia as they have been hurt in the last few years. We must restore our co-operation with Russia and not undermine it further by agreeing to vote for any sanctions.”

Yiorkos stance is not as shallow and unprincipled as it seems. By siding with Russia and alienating the evil West he is hoping the latter would lose the interest it has shown in trying to solve the Cyprob. A Cyprob solution would bring to an end the opportunistic political career of Yiorkos, which is why it should be avoided at all costs, even if it means supporting the invasion and occupation of Crimea.

THIS TALK about our valued co-operation with Russia and Moscow’s alleged support of Kyproulla is one of the biggest myths ever served to public. And it is not surprising that it is peddled by a fantasy salesman like Lillikas.

Yiorkos did not read the interview given by his fellow Paphite Archbishop Chrys to Greek magazine Epikera last month. Below is what Chrys said about Moscow’s support for Kyproulla.

“All countries have their own interests. The big powers have interests in Turkey. Cyprus is small. Indeed, when I was in Moscow in the summer, for the celebrations of the 1025 years of Christianity in Russia, I had the opportunity to see President Putin. This is exactly what he told me: ‘I cannot go to war, we have interests in Turkey. We have interests that earn us 100 billion euro a year.’ You understand.”

THE PROUD people of DIKO, that Ethnarch Junior likes to talk about, are revolting against their young and immature leader, who has taken his rhetoric about pride too literally. What a big miscalculation he made in pulling out of the government and depriving his proud people of the spoils of power.

Junior is so out of touch with the ordinary DIKO members he thought that as long as they had their pride they would be content. He did not realise that they would want something more tangible than his insane Cyprob rhetoric to feel proud – like public positions, promotions, government contracts, union privileges etc. But he cannot deliver these now that he has chosen a life in opposition.

The principled opportunism of the self-serving, former leader Marios Garoyian was much more in tune with the true spirit of DIKO, the average follower of which always asks ‘what’s in it for me’, before making a political decision.

Immature Junior has still not understood this which is why, three months after becoming leader, he has lost control of the party and many proud people of DIKO are furious with his childish, over-reaction to the joint declaration.

COMMERCE and Industry Minister Giorgos Lakkotrypis, showed the true spirit of DIKO last weekend when he quit the party in the hope that Prez Nik would keep him in his post. Had he stayed in the party he would have lost his ministerial post. It is exactly what you would expect from a Garoyian protégé.

Lakkotrypis is one of those ministers who is thought of highly by the uncritical public and always receives a positive press. Why, nobody really knows. Perhaps it is his clean-cut image or the fact that he has not been a target of the opposition. I might be prejudiced but I think it is difficult to take seriously someone who was made minister on the recommendation of Garoyian.

It is not even as if Lakkotrypis has done anything to justify the high regard in which he is held. We still do not know what the policy on hydrocarbons is, because all that Lakkotrypis has done was to dismantle the bodies set up by the previous government and set up new ones that would hire new staff.

Will Dikheads still be appointed or will they be excluded now that Junior has chosen pride over rusfeti?

JUNIOR tried to heal the wounds of the party by calling a meeting of the executive office on Friday, but it merely confirmed the divisions. According to press reports he tried to win over some of the dissidents by offering them inclusion in the DIKO ticket for the European Parliament elections in May, but there were no takers.

No such problems at DISY where there were too many members offering to stand. Everyone was surprised that the party’s deputy leader Lefteris Christoforou, a closet Akelite, would be standing. Lefteris, a classic village politician, would be as out of place in Brussels as a penguin in the desert, unable to practise the motor-mouth demagoguery for which he is famous.

It is a weird decision now that he has become the second-in-command of the party, but he has had to sacrifice his ambitions for the good of his family. Apparently his wife was an employee of Laiki who lost her job and Lefteris’ income is not enough for the family’s needs. As an MEP he would earn three times as much as he earns as a deputy in Kyproulla and ensure that his family would carry on enjoying the standard of living it was accustomed to.

WILL the Prez also get rid of our negotiator, the teddy-bear-faced Andreas Mavroyiannis, now that he does not have to pander to DIKO? One of the conditions set by DIKO for backing Nik in the presidential elections was the appointment of a negotiator because DIKO voters did not trust Nik to handle the talks.

Mavroyiannis had the approval of Garoyian, as he had worked loyally as a Tassos diplomatic henchman back in the days of the referendum. Mavroyiannis was a smart choice because, like Lakkotrypis, he is a media darling that always gets a positive press and would not attract criticism from any quarters. After all, he loyally served both Tassos and Tof.

Nice Nik was never a great fan of the Teddy lookalike and I suspect that he does not trust him completely as he had been an anti-settlement hardliner in the past. This was why last month the prez appointed legal eagle Polys Polyviou as a member of the negotiating team.

Apart from having greater legal expertise and a much better command of English, Polys, I hear, is also expected to keep an eye on Mavroyiannis, just in case he slips into his hard-line tendencies.

DEPUTIES are always on the look-out for worthy causes to embrace and thus show they are the real protectors of the people. Given the low regard politicians are held in at present, finding a worthy cause has become more of an imperative. One has been found in what is popularly known as the ‘protection of the primary residence’.

With banks obliged to reduce the very big number of non-performing loans (NPLs) on their books, foreclosures have become their only option. This, deputies concluded, would lead to banks kicking people out of their homes because they had fallen on hard times and were unable to make repayments on their housing loans. Many unemployed people would run the risk of becoming homeless if the banks embarked on re-possessions, argued deputies, and they had a point.

Even the troika favoured the protection of primary residences and the Central Bank issued guidelines for the banks in handling NPLs. The guidelines proposed restructuring of loans – reducing instalments and extending the repayment period; introducing a grace period on the repayment of capital for a short time; consolidating a number of loans into one new one – but on no account envisaged the suspension of repayments.

Yet a suspension of repayments is the main provision of the bill drafted by AKEL and EDEK currently being discussed by the House legal affairs committee. If approved, the law would allow a person who failed to reach agreement with the bank, over the restructuring of his loan, to seek a suspension of repayment in the court. Deputies claim applying to the courts would be the last resort after all other methods of reaching an agreement between the lender and the borrower were exhausted.

There will also be a financial ombudsman with the authority to mediate in disputes over restructuring loans, but the law setting up this position and defining its powers will not be ready before the end of the year. Finance Minister Harris Georgiades has pleaded with the House to wait for this government bill, which is part of the adjustment programme and will include a provision to protect primary residences, but his pleas have been ignored.

Deputies argue that people in danger of losing their homes could not wait until the end of the year and said their bill would be passed by the end of this month. In the last few days they have been using the fact that there were 6,000 foreclosure applications at the Lands and Surveys Department to justify their urgency. What they have failed to clarify is when these court decisions were issued and how many of them relate to primary residences, because this would undermine their holy mission to save home-owners.

The danger is that our populist deputies never think things through and their good intentions, fired by reckless populism, are certain to cause many more problems than they solve. First it would encourage many home-owners to refuse restructuring their loans so that they can go to court and seek a suspension of repayments. During the two, three or four years this process would take, they would pay nothing to the bank secure in the knowledge that foreclosure was not an option.

Worse still, our wise deputies’ bill would not only protect home-owners. Small to medium businesses (employing up to 10 people and/or with revenue of up to €2m) would also be able to apply to the court for a suspension of repayments. By what logic should insolvent businesses be protected? Businesses facing solvency problems are not primary residences. The courts would be flooded with applications for suspension of repayments, causing an even bigger backlog of cases. Lawyers will certainly benefit as the law will generate plenty of new business (the irony is that it would not be the poor, unemployed home-owners that will go to court but those who can afford the legal fees) but what about the banks struggling to survive? Placing legal obstacles in their way as they try to reduce the crippling number of NPLs (50 per cent compared to less than five per cent in the eurozone) could negatively affect capital adequacy and further delay their return to normal.

If NPLs are not significantly reduced, our interest rates – the highest in the EU – will not come down. Banks will still have no funds to lend and the eagerly awaited economic recovery will not happen. What would deputies do next? Pass a law lowering interest rates (this has been discussed) and forcing banks to lend money they do not have?

Deputies must realise that their bill far from helping the situation would make things much worse and should be scrapped.

By Angelos Anastasiou

GAY RIGHTS’ activists have condemned Archbishop Chrysostomos’ latest tirade against homosexuality and said the church is irredeemably alienating itself from the real world.

Speaking at an Orthodox gathering in Istanbul on Friday, the Archbishop urged Orthodox churches to take a stand against homosexuality and accused secular Christian governments of “weakening moral integrity” through acknowledging equal rights to homosexuals.

“We should, in my opinion, position ourselves on issues of relaxation of morals increasingly promoted by secular, mostly Christian governments in what is considered the advanced world, and to which the Church’s reaction has been meagre thus far,” he told a meeting of hierarchs of the autocephalous Orthodox churches convened by Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew in Istanbul. “When, for example, governments legalise not only plain civil partnership but ‘homosexual marriage’, the Church must be unequivocal in condemning homosexuality.”

In his speech, the Archbishop premised his argument with quotes from scripture, and proposed that “esteemed Christian scientists” be assigned with studying the issue and presenting their “scientific findings”, so that they can then be strengthened by “religious validation”.

His comments prompted a storm of protests on social media sites and condemnation from the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transsexual (LGBT) rights activist group ACCEPT-LGBT.

The group said that by adopting such positions the Church continued to “alienate itself further” from the real world, and warned that the Church’s position unwittingly encourages the marginalisation of vulnerable groups.

“Christian churches the world over have realised that excommunication and alienation are not the right way to promote God’s message,” a statement from the group said, and went on to quote Pope Francis who recently positioned himself on the issue of homosexuality by asking “who am I to judge a gay person of goodwill who seeks the Lord?”

The organisation said that its demands relate exclusively to political rights found in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights adopted by the United Nations and ratified by all member states, including Cyprus.

“We seek to secure only what is legally granted to all citizens – nothing more and nothing less,” the activist group argued.

“ACCEPT-LGBTCyprus considers a given that the government’s stance will reflect its obligations with regard to securing equal rights for all of its citizens. With no exceptions,” the statement concluded.

Ombudswoman Eliza Savvides said the Archbishop’s latest comments as “archaic and outdated”, saying that institutions responsible for ensuring rights equality cannot afford to consider backward attitudes.

“The Archbishop’s public remarks carry some weight with public opinion, but apparently not that much,” she said. “Our society has seen a significant improvement in its attitudes towards LGBTs in the last few years.”

Savvides noted that significant steps have been made in ensuring rights equality, and that the government policy is to proceed with enacting the civil partnership bill, planned to be submitted to the House for discussion in April.

ACCEPT-LGBT’s statement argues that significant progress has been observed in societal attitudes towards LGBTs, citing research conducted in February 2014 suggesting that “53.3 per cent of Cypriot citizens accept civil partnership legislation.”

“The Church’s position against homosexuality is an old one. We need to move forward, we can’t look back”, said Savvides.

Meanwhile, on Friday the health ministry presented the findings of a nationwide survey regarding AIDS awareness and attitudes, in which over 10 per cent of respondents said that they had had a homosexual experience.

Asked to comment on the significance of the stat in light of the fact that the previous similar survey – from 2006 – showed roughly 6 per cent of respondents reporting homosexual activity, University of Cyprus vice-rector Constantinos Fellas distinguished between sexual identity and sexual behaviour, but acknowledged that societal attitudes are evolving.

“The survey in general, and the question in particular, seeks to record respondents’ sexual behavior, not sexual identity – however, things are changing, society is changing,” he said.

By Alissa de Carbonnel

Russian forces tightened their grip on Crimea on Sunday despite a U.S. warning to Moscow that annexing the southern Ukrainian region would close the door to diplomacy in a tense East-West standoff.

Russian forces’ seizure of the Black Sea peninsula has been bloodless but tensions are mounting following the decision by pro-Russian groups that have taken over the regional parliament to make Crimea part of Russia.

The operation to seize Crimea began within days of Ukraine’s pro-Russian President Viktor Yanukovich’s flight from the country last month. Yanukovich was toppled after three months of demonstrations against a decision to spurn a free trade deal with the European Union for closer ties with Russia.

In the latest armed action, Russians took over a Ukrainian border post on the western edge of Crimea at around 6 a.m. (0400) GMT, trapping about 30 personnel inside, a border guard spokesman said.

The spokesman, Oleh Slobodyan, said Russian forces now controlled 11 border guard posts across Crimea, a former Russian territory that is home to Russia’s Black Sea fleet and has an ethnic Russian majority.

President Vladimir Putin declared a week ago that Russia had the right to invade Ukraine to protect Russian citizens, and his parliament has voted to change the law to make it easier to annex territory inhabited by Russian speakers.

The worst face-off with Moscow since the Cold War has left the West scrambling for a response, especially since the region’s pro-Russia leadership declared Crimea part of Russia last week and announced a March 16 referendum to confirm it.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, speaking to Russia’s foreign minister for the fourth day in a row, told Sergei Lavrov on Saturday that Russia should exercise restraint.

“He made clear that continued military escalation and provocation in Crimea or elsewhere in Ukraine, along with steps to annex Crimea to Russia, would close any available space for diplomacy, and he urged utmost restraint,” a U.S. official said.

President Barack Obama spoke by phone on Saturday to the leaders of France, Britain and Italy and three ex-Soviet Baltic states that have joined NATO. He assured Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia, which have their own ethnic Russian populations, that the Western military alliance would protect them if necessary.

SHOTS FIRED

A spokeswoman for the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe said military monitors from the pan-Europe watchdog had on Saturday been prevented for the third time in as many days from entering Crimea.

Shots were fired on Saturday to turn back the mission of more than 40 unarmed observers, who have been invited by Kiev but lack permission from Crimea’s pro-Russian authorities to cross the isthmus to the peninsula. No on was hurt.

Crimea’s pro-Moscow authorities have ordered all remaining Ukrainian troop detachments in the province to disarm and surrender, but at several locations they have refused to yield.

Moscow denies that the Russian-speaking troops in Crimea are under its command, an assertion Washington dismisses as “Putin’s fiction”. Although they wear no insignia, the troops drive vehicles with Russian military plates.

A Reuters reporting team filmed a convoy of hundreds of Russian troops in about 50 trucks, accompanied by armoured vehicles and ambulances, which pulled into a military base north of Simferopol in broad daylight on Saturday.

The military standoff has remained bloodless, but troops on both sides spoke of increased agitation.

“The situation is changed. Tensions are much higher now. You have to go. You can’t film here,” said a Russian soldier carrying a heavy machine gun, his face covered except for his eyes, at a Ukrainian navy base in Novoozernoye.

A source in Ukraine’s defence ministry said it was mobilising some of its military hardware for a planned exercise, Interfax news agency reported. Ukraine’s military, with barely 130,000 troops, would be no match for Russia’s. So far Kiev has held back from any action that might provoke a response.

SANCTIONS

Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski said on Saturday Poland had evacuated its consulate in Sevastopol due to “continuing disturbances by Russian forces”.

The United States has announced sanctions against individuals it accuses of interfering with Ukrainian territorial integrity, although it has yet to publish the list. Washington has threatened wider action to isolate the Russian economy.

The European Union is also considering sanctions, but has so far been more cautious. Any action would be much harder to organise for a 28-nation bloc that takes decisions unanimously and many of whose members depend on Russian natural gas.

Pro-Moscow Crimea leader Sergei Aksyonov said the referendum on union with Russia – due in a week – would not be stopped. It had been called so quickly to avert “provocation”, he said.

It is far from clear whether most of the 2 million Crimea residents want to be ruled by Moscow. When last asked in 1991, they voted narrowly for independence along with the rest of Ukraine.

Western countries dismiss the planned referendum as illegal and likely to be falsified.

By Ali al-Rubaie

A suicide bomber driving a minibus packed with explosives killed at least 32 people and wounded 147 on Sunday in the southern Iraqi city of Hilla, police and medical sources said.

The attacker approached a main checkpoint at a northern entrance to the largely Shi’ite Muslim city and detonated the minibus, a police officer said on condition of anonymity.

At least 50 cars were set ablaze with passengers trapped inside and part of the checkpoint complex was destroyed, the officer said.

It was not immediately clear who was behind the attack, but suicide bombings are a trademark of al Qaeda-affiliated groups.

“I was sitting inside my kiosk when suddenly a horrible blast threw me outside and hurled my groceries up in the air. I saw cars set ablaze with people burning inside,” said Abu Nawar, owner of a makeshift kiosk made of palm tree leaves near the checkpoint.

Police were using cutting equipment to break inside the burnt vehicles and lift out charred bodies, the police officer said, adding the death toll was expected to rise.

“When a policeman suspected the minibus, he asked the driver to pull over for a check, but the vehicle exploded,” the police officer said.

Bombings and other attacks killed almost 8,000 civilians in 2013, the worst period for the country since 2008.

The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant has been behind many of the bombings. The Iraqi government is battling the Islamist militant group in the western province of Anbar, where the group holds territory in the cities of Fallujah and Ramadi.

INTERPOL SAYS “EXAMINING ADDITIONAL SUSPECT PASSPORTS” USED TO BOARD MISSING MALAYSIA AIRLINES FLIGHT
International police agency Interpol said at least two passports recorded as lost or stolen in its database were used by passengers on board a missing Malaysia Airlines flight, and said it was “examining additional suspect passports” on Sunday.

Interpol said no checks of its database had been made by any country on an Austrian and an Italian passport between the time that they were stolen and the departure of the flight.

“Whilst it is too soon to speculate about any connection between these stolen passports and the missing plane, it is clearly of great concern that any passenger was able to board an international flight using a stolen passport listed in Interpol’s databases,” Interpol Secretary General Ronald Noble said in a statement.
Malaysian officials are poring over CCTV footage and questioning immigration officers and guards at Kuala Lumpur’s international airport, concerned that a security breach may be connected to the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines flight MH370.

Suspicions that the Beijing-bound Boeing jet, which vanished on Saturday with 239 people on board, may have been hijacked or bombed have risen after at least two passengers were found to be using stolen passports, though Malaysia’s government stressed it was considering all possibilities.

Malaysian investigators, assisted by the FBI, are probing the identities of four passengers in particular, two Malaysian officials with knowledge of the investigation told Reuters.

The four comprise two travellers with European passports, possibly Ukrainian, in addition to two travelling on stolen Austrian and Italian passports, the sources said.

“We have deployed our investigators to look through all the security camera footage. Also, they are interviewing immigration officials who let the imposters through,” said one official with direct knowledge of the investigation.

“Early indications show some sort of a security lapse, but I cannot say any further right now.”

The head of Malaysia’s civil aviation authority told reporters on Sunday that two “imposters” had been identified by investigators as they made their way from check-in, through immigration to the departure gate. Malaysia’s transport minister, Hishamuddin Hussein, confirmed that investigators were looking at four passengers.

A spokesperson for Malaysia Airports Holdings, which operates the country’s airports, declined to comment.

Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak said on Sunday that the country’s airport security protocols would be reviewed, The Star newspaper reported.

Asked how strongly investigators suspected foul play, the second official said: “There are initial indications but it’s too early … who knows what happened on that plane. But we are keeping our minds open.”

UIGHUR LINK “NOT RULED OUT”

The timing of the incident, a week after knife-wielding assailants killed at least 29 people at a train station in the southwestern Chinese city of Kunming, led to speculation that militants from China’s Uighur Muslim minority could be involved.

One of the Malaysian officials said the authorities were not ruling out Uighur involvement in the jet’s disappearance, noting that Uighurs were deported to China from Malaysia in 2011 and 2012 for carrying false passports.

“This is not being ruled out. We have sent back Uighurs who had false passports before. It is too early to say whether there is a link,” the official said.

Malaysia, a Muslim-majority country that has courted close ties with Beijing in recent years, deported 11 Uighurs in 2011 it said were involved in a human smuggling syndicate.

The next year, it was condemned by U.S.-based Human Rights Watch for deporting six Uighurs the rights group described as asylum seekers. Human Rights Watch said the six had been detained while trying to leave Malaysia on fake passports.

A source with ties to the Chinese leadership said there was no confirmed connection to Uighur militants, but described the timing as “very suspicious” coming so soon after the Kunming attack.

Li Jiheng, governor of Yunnan province where Kunming is located, told reporters on Sunday that there was currently no information to show that the knife attack and the missing flight were “necessarily connected”.

Malaysia Airlines operations director, Hugh Dunleavy, told reporters in Beijing that they were aware of the reports of stolen passports.

“As far as we’re aware, every one of the people onboard that aircraft had a visa to go to China,” he said. “That doesn’t mean they weren’t false passports, but that means that it’s probably lower down on the probability scale.”

China has a reputation for being rigorous on visa approvals and checks at border entry points, but the pair’s European passports may have enabled them to bypass the visa scrutiny.

Under a recently launched exemption programme, citizens of many Western nations are granted visa-free entry for 72 hours upon arrival in Beijing as long as they have an onward ticket.

The BBC reported that the men using the stolen passports had purchased tickets together and were flying on to Europe.

“People with fake passports present a huge problem for security,” said Yang Shu, a security expert at China’s Lanzhou University. “I strongly believe that they had something to do with the plane going missing.” (R)