By Costas Pitas and Alastair Macdonald

Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis headed for a showdown with euro zone finance ministers on Wednesday after his new leftist-led government won a parliamentary confidence vote for its refusal to extend an international bailout.

The former academic said he was ready for a clash with euro zone paymaster Germany and its allies over Greece’s determination to scrap austerity measures, end cooperation with the “troika” of EU/ECB/IMF officials overseeing the bailout programme and demand a “haircut” restructuring its debt.

“If a debt can no longer be paid off then that leads to a haircut,” Varoufakis told German magazine Stern in an interview released on Wednesday. “What is critical is that Greece’s debt cannot be paid off in the near future.”

German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble has said that if Greece is not willing to request an extension of its 240 billion euro bailout – the biggest in financial history – “then that’s it”, ruling out further assistance or debt forgiveness.

He and other euro zone ministers said they wanted to hear Greece’s ideas at a Eurogroup meeting beginning at 1630 GMT in Brussels, but they warned that time was short since the bailout programme expires at the end of this month and no solution is in sight.

Greek bond yields rose and shares fell before the meeting, with investors concerned that failure to reach a deal in the next couple of weeks could lead to a possible Greek default and exit from the euro currency.

However, most analysts said the odds were on an agreement emerging this month after lots of sound and fury.

“We are once again seeing a kind of chicken race between the new Greek government on one side and the ‘troika’ on the other,” Swedish SEB Bank chief economist Robert Bergqvist said. “Our main scenario implies a compromise that will ease current financial market worries.”

European Union leaders will take up the issue at their first summit with Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras on Thursday. EU officials said they would be briefed on the talks but there would be no room for debt negotiation at a summit mostly devoted to the Ukraine-Russia conflict, fighting terrorism and longer-term reform of the euro zone’s governance.

Tsipras struck a defiant tone in parliament late on Tuesday, saying that “little Greece” was changing Europe by casting off austerity.

“We are not negotiating the bailout; it was cancelled by its own failure,” the leader of the hard left Syriza party declared before winning the confidence vote with the backing of 162 lawmakers in the 300-seat chamber. “I want to assure you that there is no going back. Greece cannot return to the era of bailouts.”

Tsipras agreed on Wednesday to work on reforms with the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, a Paris-based inter-governmental think-tank, but said they would not be imposed from outside.

OECD chief Angel Gurria appeared to endorse Tsipras’s criticisms of the bailout programme after they met in Athens, saying it had produced low growth, high unemployment, rising inequality and a loss of trust.

DEBT RENEGOTIATION

Varoufakis has proposed a six-month transition in which Greece would be allowed to issue more short-term debt, receive the proceeds of ECB holdings of Greek bonds and tap unused bank rescue funds while renegotiating its debt. Athens would swap its euro zone loans for GDP-linked bonds and its ECB-held debt for interest-bearing perpetual bonds with no reimbursement date.

EU officials have said the most Greece can expect is a further extension of the repayment deadline for its euro zone loans, a lower interest rate and perhaps a prolonged moratorium on debt service payments, in return for continued reforms under some form of external supervision.

A senior party aide of Chancellor Angela Merkel said “direct provocation” by the new Greek government had diminished the German parliament’s willingness to help Athens. Tsipras has talked of seeking reparations for the World War Two Nazi occupation of Greece and personally rebuffed Schaeuble.

Irish Finance Minister Michael Noonan, whose country emerged successfully from its own EU/IMF bailout in 2013 and now has the highest growth rate in Europe, said he was pessimistic about Wednesday’s talks and accused the Greeks of double-speak.

“I don’t see the basis for a solution emerging yet,” Noonan told a parliamentary committee in Dublin. “Many of the proposals that are emanating are, on the face of it, technically impossible.”

He said Tsipras and Varoufakis had said different things to their domestic and European audiences.

Austria’s finance minister, Hans Joerg Schelling, said he thought a solution could be reached by the end of February if Greece wanted, otherwise things would enter a “critical phase”.

“We again have a situation now in which money is being withdrawn from Greek banks. We have a situation that certain debts may not be able to be serviced, and that is of course a critical phase because the reaction on financial markets would be enormous,” he told ORF radio.

Greek ministers have talked of possibly turning to Russia or China for assistance if there is a deadlock with the euro zone.

Tspiras discussed deepening cooperation and investment in a telephone call with Chinese Prime Minister Li Keqiang, a Greek government official said. A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman said she was not aware of any offer of aid to Athens.

Foreign Minister Nikos Kotsias held talks in Russia on Wednesday but there was no mention of financial assistance from Moscow at a joint news conference with his Russian counterpart.

The new government meanwhile confirmed that it has halted plans to privatise the main ports of Piraeus and Thessaloniki, in which China’s Cosco had been a contender.

By Constantinos Psillides

Former Paphos mayor Savvas Vergas and suspended Paphos Sewerage Board (SAPA) manager Eftychios Malekkides were behind bars at the Nicosia central prison on Wednesday afternoon after they both pleaded guilty to charges relating to bribery and corruption.

Vergas pleaded guilty to 11 charges, including bribery, corruption, and money laundering, while Malekkides pleaded guilty to 12 charges.

Both are to remain at the central prison until the sentence hearing on Friday.

Vergas admitted to receiving €520,000 in bribes and Malekkides pleaded guilty to receiving €498,000. They are both in the process of paying the money back to the state.

The scandal, which came to light last year after a report filed by Auditor-general Odysseas Michaelides, involves kickbacks construction companies were sometimes asked to pay to certain officials to secure contracts and to have projects run smoothly. The scam saddled the municipality, and subsequently the taxpayer, with extra costs due to often-unnecessary additional work on the project. The SAPA project came in some €40 million over budget.

Three of the remaining defendants, former DISY municipal councillor Giorgos Michaelides, former DIKO councillor Efstathios Efstathiou and former AKEL councillor Vasos Vasiliou have pleaded not guilty. The first hearing on their case has been set for April 20. They are faced with a total of 42 charges.

Another defendant, AKEL municipal councillor Giorgos Shialis told the court that he would raise objections to the charges against him. The court has decided to hear Shialis’ arguments on March 3.

The Paphos Assize Court comprises president Dora Socratous, Senior District Judge Lia Markou, and District Assize Court judge Michalis Droushiotis.

Vergas’ fall from grace started last September, after a suspicious land-zoning case, involving construction company Aristo Developers, came to light.

While the mayor wasn’t directly involved in the case initially, it was later discovered by police that Vergas’ close associate Maria Solomonidou sent threatening texts to people who brought the case to light.

A forensic study carried by UK experts showed that Vergas had spoken to Solomonidou seconds before she sent the threatening texts and that they were within close vicinity of each other when the texts were sent.

Further investigation of municipality affairs revealed more alleged shady dealings involving the former mayor, including granting a tax exemption for a charity concert whose organisers kept the money, and building a personal swimming pool on public land next to his home.

Vergas was first arrested on October 10. On October 23 he issued a statement saying that he would not resign but would abstain from his duties pending the resolution of the case.

On November 4 Vergas gave a much anticipated press conference where he insisted he was innocent of all accusations and that he didn’t intend to resign because doing so “would show that I was guilty.”

On November 27, Vergas along with Malekkides and the former municipal councillor for DISY Giorgos Michaelides first appeared in court in relation with the SAPA scandal. About a week later, on December 2, Vergas’ pledge to keep hold of the  municipality’s reins came to an end. In a letter addressed to Interior Minister Socratis Hasikos, while in custody, Vergas stepped down as mayor but still maintained that he was innocent.

That also didn’t last long. On December 5 police arrested his wife Sofia, after Greek businessman Christos Drakopoulos told police that he had deposited €85,000 in her bank account so that his company Envitec could secure a contract to build a waste management plant. The very next day, Vergas requested a meeting with police investigators and admitted to all charges. His statement, along with that of Malekkides, who cooperated with authorities three weeks after Vergas did, allowed the legal services to build a case against the municipal councillors.

Malekkides’ statement also implicated EDEK MP Fidias Sarikas, who underwent five hours of questioning by police on Tuesday. Malekkides claimed Sarikas was the one who set him on the path of corruption, when in 2000 he forced him into accepting a bribe by a German-based company to secure a contract.

Sarikas dismisses all accusations made by Malekkides. While not officially confirmed, reports said that the legal services will also charge Sarikas within the coming days.

By Stelios Orphanides

Greek finance minister Yanis Varoufakis is participating for the first time at a eurogroup meeting today, as reconciling differences separating the Greek radical leftish government and European partners appears unlikely.

Varoufakis is expected to meet tough resistance to Greece’s request for a bridge financing agreement that will run until June and allow the country implement a reform programme containing more reform and less austerity. The bridge financing would allow Greece issue more short-term debt in excess to a 15 billion euros cap, receive 1.9 billion euros in profits the European Central Bank and other authorities make by holding Greek debt.

By Stelios Orphanides

The government saw the average cost of short term borrowing drop 47 basis points in the fourth quarter of 2014, the public debt management office said.

Total issuance of short term securities, including rollovers, was 869 million euros, the PDMO, which is a unit of the finance ministry, said in an emailed statement today.

By Stelios Orphanides

The central government posted a fiscal surplus of 0.4 per cent on a cash basis in January to December last year, mainly on reduced spending, the finance minister said today.

Overall fiscal surplus last year was below 68.1 million euros compared to 843.6 million euros the year before, the finance ministry said in a statement on its website today. The government generated a primary surplus 534.4 million euros last year compared to a primary deficit of 270 million euros in 2013.

By Staff Reporter

Greece plans to boost defence cooperation with Cyprus in more practical ways in the coming months including possible tri-partite exercises with Egypt, its Defence Minister Panos Kammenos said on Wednesday during his visit to the island.

Speaking at a joint news conference with his Cypriot counterpart Christoforos Fokaides in Nicosia, Kammenos said that for the Greek government, the Cyprus issue remained one of invasion and occupation.

He referred to Turkey’s violation of Cyprus’ economic zone by the seismic vessel Barbaros, calling it a “clear provocation”, and added that despite efforts to improve relations, Turkey had continued with the same policy it followed after the invasion and occupation of Cyprus.

Kammenos said Ankara could not continue to ignore international law, UN resolutions and the existence of an EU member state, which it persisted in doing where Cyprus was concerned.

“We want peace but we are ready to respond, if necessary to any attempt to infringe on the national sovereignty or territorial integrity of the wider defence area of Greece and Cyprus,” Kammenos said.

He also announced that the Greek armed forces were planning, in the coming months, joint exercises with Cyprus, Israel and possibly Egypt.

Asked whether all this meant that the Cyprus-Greece Joint Defence Dogma of the 1990s was being resurrected, Kammenos did not use the specific term but said there would be a rearrangement of relations through practical cooperation and a stronger and more permanent presence of officers on both sides.

He said “the defensive shield of Hellenism” extended from Thrace, through the Aegean Sea to Cyprus, and spoke about additional defence provisions relating to  the new geopolitical challenges in the region, especially for hydrocarbons-producing countries .

Fokaides thanked the Greek minister for his country’s support and announced that for the first time, a National Guard officer would be stationed in Athens as a liaison between Cyprus and the Greek defence forces.

“Greece was and remains a steady and selfless defender of the independence and sovereignty of the Republic of Cyprus and a consistent advocate in its fight for liberation from the [Turkish] occupation and for the reunification of our country,” Fokaides said.

He said both countries were facing great challenges and the visit by Kammenos was a “strong confirmation of our fraternal bonds and our common path”.

“We seek to deepen and strengthen our bilateral and multilateral cooperation in the field of defense and security,” he said, adding that the policy of the two countries was synonymous with the defence of the principles of international and European law.

“We are working to address common threats, rather than creating new ones. We seek to jointly solve problems, not create other problems, “Fokaides said.

“At the same time it would be wrong if our readiness and our determination to defend our national rights were underestimated”

Following are the results from the Cyprus Cup quarter-final, first-leg matches, played on Wednesday February 11:

Omonia 2-0 Karmiotissa

Othellos Athienou 1-1 AEK

By Patricia Zengerle

US President Barack Obama sent Congress a proposal on Wednesday for authorisation to use military force against Islamic State that would limit the operation to three years and bar any large-scale invasion by US ground troops.

But the proposal faced swift resistance from Obama’s fellow Democrats wary of another Middle East war and from Republicans who criticise Obama’s foreign policy as too passive and want stronger measures against the militants, also known as ISIL.

“I have directed a comprehensive and sustained strategy to degrade and defeat ISIL,” Obama wrote in a letter to Congress calling on lawmakers to back his proposal to “show the world we are united in our resolve to counter the threat posed by ISIL.”

Obama’s plan must be approved by both the US Senate and House of Representatives. Lawmakers said they would begin hearings quickly. Senate Republicans were to meet on the issue later on Wednesday. Some predicted a vote in March.

Islamic State militants have killed thousands while seizing territory in Iraq and Syria in an attempt to establish a hub of jihadism in the heart of the Arab world.

Republicans, who control Congress after November elections, criticised aspects of Obama’s proposal, particularly the limits it sets on using ground troops.

The Republican Speaker of the House of Representatives, John Boehner, said the plan would face hearings and debate “and I’m sure changes” in Congress.

“I’m not sure the strategy that has been outlined will accomplish the mission the president says he wants to accomplish,” he told reporters after a meeting of Republican House members.

Obama has defended his authority to lead an international coalition against Islamic State since Aug. 8 when US fighter jets began attacking the jihadists in Iraq. But he has faced criticism for failing to seek the backing of Congress, where some accused him of breaching his constitutional authority.

The White House said Obama would make a statement on his request at 3:30 p.m. (2030 GMT).

USING LOCAL FORCES

The plan does not authorize “long-term, large-scale ground combat operations” such as those during the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. Obama said those operations would be left to local forces.

But it does allow for certain ground combat operations including rescue operations or the use of special operations forces. And it allows for the use of US forces for intelligence collection, targeting operations for drone strikes and planning and other assistance to local forces.

Representative Adam Schiff, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, said Obama’s proposal contained too few controls. He said a new authorization should place more specific limits on the use of ground troops and expressed concerns that Obama’s plan did not set geographic limits on the campaign.

If passed, the measure would be the first war authorisation approved by Congress since lawmakers in 2002 gave then-President George W. Bush authority to wage the Iraq War.

Obama’s text includes a repeal of that 2002 measure. But his proposal leaves in place a 2001 authorisation, passed shortly after the Sept. 11 attacks, for a campaign against al Qaeda and its affiliates.

Rights groups urged lawmakers to repeal the 2001 authorization, which did not include an end date and has been invoked by the White House to carry out drone and missile strikes against suspected al Qaeda militants in Yemen and Somalia.

Obama said he remained committed to working with Congress to “refine, and ultimately repeal” the 2001 AUMF. He said enacting a measure specific to the campaign against Islamic State fighters could serve as a model for revamping the 2001 measure.

By Elias Hazou

PRESIDENT Nicos Anastasiades and House Speaker Yiannakis Omirou said on Wednesday that they would be waiving their entitlement to an MP’s pension, shortly after reports that 126 currently serving officials will start receiving, in addition to their salary, pension payouts for posts previously held in the state sector.

In a brief statement, Anastasiades said he would waive the right to an MP’s pension for the duration of his presidency.

Anastasiades served as a deputy for the DISY party from 1981 to February 28, 2013, when he assumed office as President of the Republic.

Likewise Omirou, who has been House Speaker since 2011, said that as long as he holds this post he will not take an MP’s pension.

Although the Treasury has determined Omirou’ status to be House Speaker, rather than MP, and that he is thus entitled to a deputy’s pension (he is over 60 years old), Omirou has said he still considers himself to be a serving MP and will temporarily waive the right to the pension.

The issue came to the fore after daily Politis broke the story that 126 currently serving state officials will as of this month start receiving pension cheques for posts previously held in the state sector.

The extra cost of these pension payouts is estimated at around €2m a year.

In addition to Anastasiades and Omirou, the officials include foreign minister Ioannis Kasoulides, labour minister Zeta Emilianidou, the Attorney-general, the ombudswoman, mayors, community leaders and members of the Public Service Commission.

It’s understood that Kasoulides, Emilianidou as well as Attorney-general Costas Clerides have also waived their right to pension payouts for posts they formerly held in the civil service.

The payouts are starting now because the Treasury has just finished tracking down all the officials entitled to the perk. The pensions will include back payments going back to October last year when the Supreme Court ruled that state officials called out of retirement to serve in a different position should get both their salary and their pension from the previous post.

The top court was handing down a verdict on an appeal filed by 52 former and current public sector and semi-governmental officials who had been denied their pension while they were drawing a salary.

The Supreme Court had found an article of the State Officials on Pensions Act of 2011 to be unconstitutional.

The contentious article in the Act mandated that no official should receive a pension while being employed by the state.

That legislation, drafted by the House, had come as a response to the fact that officials were receiving multiple pensions as a result of having served in more than one post in their career.

It was part of a broader drive to trim the public sector payroll.

But the Supreme Court said the article was in breach of the constitution, which protects private property. The court concluded that a pension should be considered as property and as such is protected under the constitution.

It said that while private property laws can be suspended when it comes to the common interest, the state did not sufficiently prove that this was the case.

Now, in addition to the €2m extra cost to the 126 officials, the Treasury will be coughing out another €2.5m a year to the 52 persons who had won their appeal with the Supreme Court. Unlike the others, these 52 are entitled to pension back-pay going back to May 2011, when the State Officials on Pensions Act was passed.

According to Politis, the Treasury has meantime rejected requests by 33 more people who had sought retroactive pension payouts (from May 2011) in the wake of the Supreme Court’s ruling.

The payouts in question concern those people who are paid by the Treasury. But Politis said that additionally there are a number of persons currently in the state sector who are entitled to pensions from semi-governmental organisations in which they previously worked. If these persons have also claimed pensions from their former SGO employer, that would inflate the amount of the payouts even more.

Lawmakers, meanwhile, are expected to take another shot on Thursday at prohibiting concurrent salaries and pensions, by formulating a new bill, this time in such a way as not to contravene the constitution.

By Mohammad Mukhashaf

Al Qaeda-linked fighters seized a large army base in a dawn attack in southern Yemen on Thursday, militants and residents said, hours after the United Nations warned that the country was on the brink of civil war.

The base in the southern province of Shabwa, housing a brigade of up to 2,000 government soldiers, fell after several hours of heavy clashes, residents and local news sites said.

The al Qaeda-affiliated Ansar al-Sharia said on Twitter it had set off a suicide bomb at the gate and imprisoned some of the troops.

Al Qaeda and other Sunni Muslim militants have stepped up attacks since rival Iranian-backed Shi’ite Muslim fighters from the north seized the capital in September and started expanding across the country.

The Houthis have sidelined the central government and have clashed with Sunni tribesmen in Yemen, which borders oil giant Saudi Arabia.

“We believe the situation is very dangerous. Yemen is on the brink of civil war,” Jamal Benomar, the U.N. Special Envoy to Yemen, said in an interview with television channels al Arabiya and al-Hadath late on Wednesday.

He accused all sides of contributing to the political and economic turmoil and called for more talks.

An official from the town of Beyhan near the seized army base said residents feared the Houthis would now move in to confront the Ansar al Sharia fighters.

“We are scared this (the capture of the army base) is going to be used as a justification for a Houthi attack and that they will take over Shabwa with the help of the army,” the official said, refusing to be identified.

Ansar al-Sharia said after bombing the entrance of the base, it took control of three guard towers and one tank.

“By approximately eight o’clock in the morning, the mujahideen had imprisoned most of the soldiers inside,” the group said on Twitter.

Yemen’s government was a key ally of Washington in its war on al Qaeda. The United States has been carrying out drone strikes on militant targets for over a decade, many in the south.

But the United States, as well as Britain and France, closed their embassies in the capital Sanaa on Wednesday, citing security concerns since the Houthi takeover.

Yemen is also home to Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, one of the global network’s most active arms that has carried out attacks abroad.

By Abdoulaye Massalaki

Thousands of civilians fled their homes in the southeastern Niger town of Diffa this week, officials said on Thursday, following waves of cross-border raids and suicide bombings by Nigerian militant group Boko Haram.

Attacks in Niger are deepening a humanitarian crisis in the remote border zone. The area, struggling to feed some 150,000 people who have run to escape violence in northern Nigeria, has seen around 7,000 arrive this week in Zinder, Niger’s second biggest town some 450 km west of Diffa.

Niger’s military said its forces had killed 260 Boko Haram militants and arrested others in fighting since Feb. 6 but the situation was under control.

The International Rescue Committee, which supplied the population estimates, has teams working around Diffa and Zinder. Matias Meier, country director, said some families in Zinder, one of the poorest regions in Niger, were having to host 20 people, while other displaced were sleeping in the stadium.

A local politician said the flow of people out of Diffa continued on Thursday even though the town was calm.

“Everyone wants to get as far from Boko Haram as possible,” the politician said, asking not to be named.

The IRC’s Meier said: “Those who went on the trucks are the lucky ones. Bus tickets are sold out until the end of next week. Many are just walking or going by bicycle.”

A tout at Diffa’s bus station said hundreds of mini-busses, coaches and trucks had ferried people out of the town. The cost of a seat in any vehicle travelling to Zinder had nearly tripled to 15,000 CFA francs ($26), he said.

Boko Haram’s insurgency has killed thousands in northeastern Nigeria. Regional armies are mobilising a joint force of 8,700 men to defeat the group that is increasingly threatening neighbouring countries.

Niger’s army, backed by Chadian forces deployed to the country, has fought several battles sparked by raids in the Diffa region by militants this week.

“We have taken the steps necessary to guarantee the peace and security of the population. We call on people not to panic,” said Colonel Moustapha Michel Ledru, spokesman for Niger’s armed forces.

A state of emergency has been declared in Diffa region.

Local authorities in Zinder told France’s RFI radio that at least 4,000 displaced had arrived in the town. Schools and administrative buildings there were largely closed on Thursday.

Authorities in Niger have registered over 100,000 Nigerian refugees and Nigeriens who have returned to their home country from Nigeria. However, Meier said violence in recent months meant the number of displaced in Diffa region was closer to 150,000.

The new wave of displacement comes as farmers should be preparing to plant crops for the next harvest, highlighting the long-term impact of the violence.

“People should be planting now but they are on the move,” Meier said.

By Vladimir Soldatkin

Germany, France, Russia and Ukraine agreed a deal on Thursday that offers a “glimmer of hope” for an end to fighting in eastern Ukraine after marathon overnight talks.

But all four leaders said there was a long way to go and accusations from Kiev of a new, mass influx of Russian armour into rebel-held eastern Ukraine further undermined the prospects for peace.

The deal envisages a ceasefire between Ukrainian forces and Russian-backed separatists starting on Sunday, followed by the withdrawal of heavy weapons from the front line and constitutional reform to give eastern Ukraine more autonomy.

“The main thing which has been achieved is that from Saturday into Sunday there should be declared, without any conditions at all, a general ceasefire,” a visibly downbeat Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko told journalists.

Emerging separately from more than 16 hours of negotiations, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, one of the sponsors of the talks, differed with Russian President Vladimir Putin over the reasons they took so long.

Putin accused Kiev of prolonging the talks, the culmination of a dramatic diplomatic initiative by France and Germany following an upsurge in fighting in which the separatists tore through an earlier ceasefire line.

Merkel on the other hand, said Poroshenko “did everything to achieve the possibility of an end to the bloodshed”, while she said Putin put pressure on the separatists to agree to the ceasefire “towards the end” of the talks.

The deal offered a “glimmer of hope” she said, but big obstacles remained in the way of peace.

It is likely to ease pressure in the United States for Washington to send military aid to the stretched Ukrainian army, and from some in Europe for tighter sanctions against Moscow, due to be discussed at a European summit later on Thursday.

The agreement could also help protect Putin from any fallout from the deaths of Russians in the fighting, said by Ukraine to be soldiers. Moscow says they are volunteers.

IMF LIFELINE

More than 5,000 people have been killed in the conflict, which has now surged, with more than 70 Ukrainian servicemen and at least 24 civilians killed so far this month, according to Reuters calculations based on official Ukrainian figures.

A Ukrainian military spokesman said around 50 tanks, 40 missile systems and 40 armoured vehicles had crossed overnight into eastern Ukraine from Russia. It was not immediately possible to verify the figures, which were higher than in previous such statements. Moscow dismisses them as groundless.

The fighting has destabilised Ukraine both militarily and economically. As the deal was reached, Ukraine was offered a $40-billion lifeline by the International Monetary Fund to stave off financial collapse.

Russia’s economy has also suffered, from the sanctions imposed over its support for the separatists in eastern Ukraine and annexation of Crimea last year. Russian shares surged on Thursday after the deal was announced and the rouble gained, but then slipped back.

WEAPONS WITHDRAWAL

The agreement addressed some of the main stumbling points, including a “demarcation line” between separatists and Ukrainian forces, which the rebels wanted to reflect gains from a recent offensive which shredded an earlier ceasefire deal.

The compromise was that the rebels will withdraw weapons from a line set by the earlier Minsk agreement in September, while the Ukrainians will withdraw from the current frontline.

Ukraine will also get control of its border with Russia, but in consultation with the rebels and only after the regions gain more autonomy under constitutional reform by the end 2015.

The ceasefire and heavy weapons pullback would be overseen by Europe-wide security body, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe.

“We have managed to agree on the main issues,” Putin told Russian reporters after the talks in the Belarussian capital Minsk.

“Why did it take so long? I think this is due to the fact that the Kiev authorities still refuse to make direct contact with the representatives of the Donetsk and Luhansk peoples’ republics,” he said, referring to two rebel-held regions in eastern Ukraine.

French President Francois Hollande said there was still much work to be done on the Ukraine crisis, but the agreement was a real chance to improve the situation. “The coming hours will be decisive,” he said later in Brussels.

Pro-Moscow separatists tightened the pressure on Kiev by launching some of the war’s worst fighting on Wednesday, killing 19 Ukrainian soldiers in assaults near the railway town of Debaltseve.

As the fighting escalated, Washington has begun openly talking of arming Ukraine to defend itself from “Russian aggression”, raising the prospect of a proxy war in the heart of Europe between Cold War foes.

FUND BAILOUT

The talks in Minsk took place as an International Monetary Fund mission agreed a bailout to save Ukraine from bankruptcy.

The Fund provisionally agreed a $17.5 billion facility with Ukraine, part of a $40 billion funding package, IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde said.

Kiev and NATO accuse Russia of supplying separatists with men and weapons. Moscow denies it is involved in fighting for territory Putin calls “New Russia”.

As the French and German leaders’ peace initiative was announced, pro-Russian rebels appeared determined to drive home their advantage ahead of a deal.

Armoured columns of Russian-speaking soldiers with no insignia have been advancing for days around Debaltseve, which has seen heavy fighting in recent days.

On the Russian side of the border, Moscow has begun military exercises in 12 regions involving more than 30 missile regiments, RIA news agency reported on Thursday, citing a Defence Ministry official.

Let’s take a look at the moments that will long live in the memory of football fans:

For more articles and the latest soccer news, check out 90min.com

By Constantinos Psillides

Former Paphos Savvas Vergas, who pleaded guilty to bribery and money laundering charges in connection with the town’s sewerage scandal, has been transferred to an undisclosed location, instead of prison, and placed under police protection following threats against his life, a state official said on Thursday.

Deputy Attorney-general Rikkos Erotokritou told CyBC radio on Thursday that Vergas had requested protection after he was threatened in connection with a statement he gave two months ago, implicating a certain – unnamed – individual.

“After the former mayor gave a statement admitting to the accusations and while waiting to be taken to court, he told authorities that a person from Paphos approached him and told him not to testify against one of the other defendants. In his statement, Vergas implicated a certain municipal councillor, who, as he said, travelled to Athens and brought money with him. Let’s just leave it at that,” Erotokritou told CyBC radio.

The person who made the threat allegedly told Vergas that he will have a problem in prison if he testified against that person.

Erotokritou added that police have identified the person that threatened Vergas and have filed charges against them.

The deputy attorney-general pointed out that this was just a temporary arrangement.

The decision prompted the reaction of main opposition AKEL MP Irene Charalambidou, who demanded to know whether prison was safe for inmates.

“After the string of suicides in the Central Prison, admitting that some people have the power to control things happening inside is extremely serious,” Charalambidou said.

Justice Minister Ionas Nicolaou rejected the suggestion and also took a shot at the legal service.

“I cannot tolerate the insinuation that Central Prison is not safe for inmates,” he said. “I don’t know what Vergas said in his statement to the police, or what the office of the attorney-general has in mind, but I want to assure you that Central Prison safety is not compromised.”

In a statement later in the day, the justice ministry said it had not been informed about the alleged threats.

“Any threats against Mr. Vergas cannot be perceived as a real … without prior investigation and assessment,” the ministry said.

Erotokritou issued a statement later in the day, saying that the decision to place Vergas in protective custody at a place other than prison was not meant to imply that it was not safe.

The deputy attorney-general assured that by placing Vergas under protection did not mean a reduced sentence.

“He will serve his full sentence,” he added.

Vergas’ sentencing hearing is scheduled for Friday.

Vergas and Efthymios Malekkides, the head of the Paphos sewerage board, have pleaded guilty to 11 and 12 charges respectively, including bribery, corruption, and money laundering.

Vergas admitted to receiving €520,000 in bribes and Malekkides pleaded guilty to receiving €498,000.

Both have returned immovable property and cash in a bid for leniency.

Four others, one current and three former municipal councillors, are facing trial in connection with the scandal.

The scandal involves millions in kickbacks given to officials in return for construction contracts relating to the town’s sewerage system.

By Shadi Bushra

Egypt’s long-suffering drivers, worn down by decades of jams and crashes, are turning to social media to stave off a new, even more pressing threat — the traffic chaos caused by roadside bombs.

The makers of mobile travel app “Bey2ollak” have started sending their users and online followers warnings on bomb scares and resulting hold-ups in Cairo and Alexandria using the hashtag #WhereIsTheBomb.

The label has become so popular that it “trended” as one of the most used phrases by Egyptian Twitter users this week.

“We really wish we didn’t need to incorporate such a feature,” the app’s co-creator Gamal ElDin Sadek told Reuters. “Eventually we categorised it under one hashtag to be better organised in warning people.”

Egypt has been battling an Islamist militant insurgency that has killed hundreds of police and soldiers since then army chief Abdel Fattah al-Sisi ousted president Mohamed Mursi of the Muslim Brotherhood in July 2013 after mass protests.

Most of the worst attacks have hit the Sinai Peninsula, but smaller-scale blasts and attacks have become increasingly common in cities.

Bey2ollak, or “It’s being said”, says it sends its 1 million users traffic alerts coming in from other users, news reports and photos taken by people at the scene.

It found it was sending out more and more of these notifications after several bomb scares around the recent anniversary of the 2011 uprising that ousted long-time autocrat Hosni Mubarak. Two weeks ago, it created the hashtag.

The Egyptian affiliate of Islamic State claimed coordinated attacks last month that killed at least 30 security personnel, some of the deadliest anti-government violence in years.

The interior ministry’s media office declined comment on the app.

A Ryanair flight from the UK to Cyprus had to be diverted to Hungary on Thursday following a medical emergency.

Flight FR3131 from London Stansted to Paphos had to land in Budapest.

“This flight … diverted to Budapest after a customer became ill on board,” the airline told the Cyprus Mail in an emailed response, without elaborating.

“The aircraft landed normally and the customer was met by medical personnel and disembarked the aircraft, which departed to Paphos a short time later. Ryanair sincerely apologised to all customers affected by this short delay.”

The flight carrying 182 passengers and six crew had been expected at Paphos at 4.50pm.

It was re-scheduled for 6.55pm.

By Renee Maltezou and John O’Donnell

The European Central Bank raised the pressure on Greece to extend an international bailout deal on Thursday, as new leftist Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras told EU leaders austerity was killing his economy and an alternative had to be found.

After euro zone finance ministers failed to agree a joint statement about a way forward on Greece’s debt crisis, the ECB’s Governing Council held a short-notice teleconference to discuss how long it could continue to keep Greek banks afloat.

The ECB agreed to increase Emergency Liquidity Assistance (ELA) from the Greek central bank by about 5 billion euros to 65 billion euros and to review the policy again on Feb. 18, Greek central bank and government officials told Reuters. The timing of the review right after euro zone finance ministers meet again keeps Athens on a short leash.

The ECB authorised the temporary expedient last week when it stopped accepting Greek government bonds in return for funding.

Arriving for his first European Union summit, Tsipras told reporters: “I’m very confident that together we can find a mutually viable solution in order to heal the wounds of austerity, to tackle the humanitarian crisis across the EU and bring Europe back to the road of growth and social cohesion.”

Chancellor Angela Merkel, vilified by the Greek left as Europe’s “austerity queen”, said Germany was prepared for a compromise and finance ministers had a few more days to consider Greece’s proposals before they meet next Monday.

“Europe always aims to find a compromise, and that is the success of Europe,” she said on arrival in Brussels. “Germany is ready for that. However, it must also be said that Europe’s credibility naturally depends on us respecting rules and being reliable with each other.”

The two leaders came face-to-face for the first time in the EU Council chamber. According to Greek aides, a smiling Merkel congratulated Tsipras on his election and said: “I hope we will have good cooperation despite the difficulties.” Tsipras smiled back and replied: “I hope so.”

Greek officials said no private meeting was planned between the two during the one-day EU summit.

EU diplomats said the leaders would receive a briefing from the chairman of euro zone finance ministers, Jeroen Dijssebloem, on Wednesday’s inconclusive talks and Tsipras would have a chance to address them over dinner but there would be no extended discussion on Greece.

Other leaders said it was up to Greece to respect budget discipline and economic reform commitments made by previous governments if it wanted continued aid.

ECB executive board member Peter Praet said the ECB would apply its existing ELA rules to Greece. “It is key that the banks benefiting from emergency liquidity assistance remain solvent,” he told the Financial Times.

His comments appeared to signal that the central bank could cut the cash lifeline if Greece failed to reach a deal with its creditors before the 240 billion euro bailout expires at the end of this month.

That would expose Greek banks to a risk of capital flight and collapse, which analysts say could in turn trigger a Greek exit from the euro zone, sparking wider financial turmoil.

Highlighting the precariousness of Greece’s position, tax revenues fell about 1 billion euros short of the budget target in January as Greeks held off payments before the Jan. 25 election, anticipating that the new leftist government would scrap an unpopular property levy.

SHORT SHRIFT

Euro zone finance ministers in the Eurogroup will try again on Monday to bridge their differences, but at Greek insistence, there will be no preparatory talks between officials from Athens and the European Commission, the IMF and the ECB. Tsipras has vowed no longer to cooperate with the “troika” of lenders.

A Greek official said the hard left Syriza party leader, elected on a tide of public anger against austerity last month, was determined to put the Greek crisis at the centre of the Brussels summit. However other EU officials said it would be largely devoted to the conflict between Ukraine and Russia.

Merkel and French President Francois Hollande flew in from Minsk after brokering an uncertain ceasefire in Ukraine in overnight talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Ukrainian counterpart, Petro Poroshenko.

Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis refused to sign up to a joint statement at Wednesday’s Eurogroup meeting because it referred to the bailout and its continuation, he said.

“HUNG UP ON WORDING”

The Greek official sought to depict the difference as largely semantic, saying: “We will try to reach an agreement and explain that we shouldn’t get hung up on wording.”

Playing down the threat to the banking system if creditors cut off funding after Feb. 28, the official said: “If we have a conclusion that says there is a programme in place, or if we are close to an agreement, no liquidity problems will exist.”

The euro zone, the ECB and IMF are insisting on firm conditions for any “bridge” financing. Other governments, including Ireland, Portugal and Spain, which have had to seek help under tough conditions, are also keen their own voters do not see Tsipras winning a better deal than they did.

EU officials play down the risk of Greece being forced out of the euro zone, something Tsipras and most Greeks do not want and which could send destabilising ripples across the bloc as it faces a confrontation with Russia over Ukraine.

However, the politics of the Greek debate are difficult.

“The real risk in Athens seems to be that Tsipras has raised expectations to such an extent that he could find it extremely difficult to back down from his rhetoric and strike a deal which the rest of the Eurozone could accept,” Berenberg Bank economists wrote in a note on Thursday.

By Evie Andreou

THERE can be no discussion about increased benefits when we are amidst a memorandum and there are 70,000 people who are unemployed, Health minister Philippos Patsalis said on Thursday after the nurses union PASYNO staged a 12-hour strike.

“PASYNO’s strike in such difficult times and especially to claim salary increases which would cost €27m, while also claiming unhealthy occupation allowance is unjustifiable and unnecessary, to say the least,” Patsalis told CyBC.

The union, that called the strike from 7.15am to 7.15pm, apologised to the public for the inconvenience and said that it was forced to take this measure since the government did not heed to the nurses’ demands.

No major problems were recorded at the Nicosia and Larnaca general hospitals, compared to Limassol, Paphos and Famagusta hospitals where more PASYNO members were working.

“We have exhausted all options, dialogue after dialogue, we sent a letter to the minister, we met with him several times, but unfortunately there was no other way to claim our rights as nurses,” said PASYNO general secretary Georgios Frixou.

He said that the union wants their pay scales to be adjusted to the same level as the other university-graduate civil servants, from A5 to A8, that nurses on term contracts who have served for more than 30 months be given indefinite contracts and for the unfreezing of 189 posts for which candidates took the exams in 2011 and are already working, but still on temporary contacts.

He added that the last demand does not burden the state budget since the nurses are already employed.

Frixou said that his union wants for discussion to begin on these issues since it is a long process, so that they will be ready when the government has concluded the bail-out plan and the country is free of the memorandum.

Patsalis said he discussed both the issues of pay scale adjustment and unhealthy working allowance with the two nurses’ unions, PASYDI and PASYNO.

“Concerning pay scales, it is an issue we will see in the future, and I gave it in writing and the same goes for the unhealthy profession allowance,” Patsalis said.

Answering to Frixou’s claims that the government is violating EU legislation by not offering indefinite contracts to contract nurses that have been employed for more than 30 months, Patsalis said that there is no abnormality as the employees are not fired, but that they are being rehired.

PASYDI’s nurses union announced that they would not go on a strike since they wanted to give ample time to the ministry to take the necessary actions to be able to respond to their demands.

The two unions had sent a letter to Patsalis on January 28.

PASYNO urged hospital administrations to allow its members to take part in the strike and nursing students to support it since the union’s demands pave the way to their own professional future, they said.

CYPRUS became the 35th Council of Europe (CoE) member state on Thursday to ratify the Convention on Protection of Children against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse, known as the Lanzarote Convention.

CoE Secretary General Thorbjørn Jagland has said that sexual abuse constitutes one of the most outrageous and unacceptable crimes against children, a press release issued by the Council of Europe says.

“Thanks to our Convention, we can collect data and check whether the states have fulfilled their promise to protect children from sexual violence and to better combat it,” he added.

Jagland further expressed his satisfaction because Cyprus joined in this battle.

The Convention, which comes into force on June 1, criminalises all kinds of sexual abuse against children, while making it mandatory for states to adopt relevant legislation and to take steps to prevent sexual violence.

It also encourages governments and social services to protect children who have fallen victim, whilst at the same time prosecuting offenders.

Statistical data shows that one in five children under 18 years old falls victim of sexual abuse, while in most cases the perpetrator is a member of the family or another person the child trusts.

The Council of Europe has launched the “One in Five” awareness campaign aiming to break the silence surrounding the issue, considered taboo in many countries.

Cyprus joined the campaign in November 2014, when the House of Representatives ratified the Convention, paving the way for its ratification at an international level.

The Co-operative Central Bank will lower interest rates on all mortgages being serviced by one per cent as of March 1st, it announced on Friday.

The decision impacts positively some 34,000 households which have obtained housing loans from co-ops, which hold a share of over 40 per cent in the housing-loan market.

According to the CCB, non-performing housing loans will be subject to a 0.5 per cent interest rate decrease as soon as they are restructured, and a further 0.5 per cent once loan repayments resume as agreed.

CCB chairman Nicolas Hadjiyiannis described the decision as “very important” and said it was part of the organisation’s broader strategy.

“Quickly responding and fully aware of its sensitive role and its leading position in the local financial environment, the Co-operative movement has decided this measure along with a promise that the effort to lower interest rates will continue,” he said.

“It is our vision and goal, because our country needs it.”

The announcement comes one month after theCCB announced it was cutting its rates for agricultural loans by an average 2.0 per cent, in a bid to boost the sector as part of the effort for economic recovery.

Effective January 1, the CCB reduced the rate on loans to 4.75 per cent. It also cut the rate for non performing loans that are restructured to 5.75 per cent.

Provided the terms of the restructuring agreement were observed, after six months the rate would be further reduced to 4.75 per cent, the lender said.

Lending rate cuts will average 2.0 per cent for performing loans, the CCB said. They will affect around 8,500 loans.

The reductions on agricultural loan rates followed a similar move regarding student loans back in November.

All three moves are the result of long-term planning by the CCB for the gradual lowering of interest rates, aiming at enabling its customers meet their obligations and contribute to the recovery of the local economy.

As part of the island’s €10 billion international bailout, co-ops received €1.5 billion in taxpayers’ money to recapitalise.

The sector has been reduced in size through mergers, which saw the island’s 93 co-operatives merged into 18.