Russia on Wednesday warned authorities in Cyprus not to allow the US military to deploy on their territory, saying such a move would draw a Russian reaction, and result in “dangerous and destabilizing consequences” for the Mediterranean island.
Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Moscow had become aware of what she called “anti-Russian plans” involving Cyprus and the US military, which she said was eyeing setting up forward operating bases for its troops there.
“We’re getting information from various sources that the United States is actively studying options to build up its military presence on Cyprus,” Zakharova told a news briefing in Moscow. “The aim is not being hidden — to counter growing Russian influence in the region in the light of the successful operation by the Russian military in Syria.”
There was no immediate US response to her comments.
Cypriot government spokesman Prodromos Prodromou said the island had no desire to further militarize.
“We want to clarify that it has never been our aim, nor do we seek the militarization of Cyprus,” he said, responding to Zakharova’s remarks.
“The Republic of Cyprus, because of its advantageous geographical position, offers facilities for missions of a humanitarian nature and then only in cases where countries make a request or have a relevant MOU [memorandum of understanding] with the Republic,” he said.
Zakharova said a US delegation had inspected potential sites for the bases and that Washington was engaged in intensive talks with Nicosia on expanding military cooperation.
Cyprus is a popular destination for Russian tourists and many wealthy Russian businesspeople bank or own property there.
The island, a former British colony, hosts two British military bases.
Cyprus was split by a Turkish invasion in 1974 that followed a Greek-inspired coup. Greek Cypriots run the internationally recognized government.
Zakharova said Russia had repeatedly warned Cypriot authorities against allowing the island to be further militarized.
“It being drawn into US and NATO plans in the eastern Mediterranean and the Middle East will inevitably lead to dangerous and destabilizing consequences for Cyprus itself,” she said. “In Moscow we can’t ignore the anti-Russian element in these [US] plans and in the event that they are implemented we will be forced to take countermeasures.”
Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) is to visit Russia next month for a summit of the BRICS bloc of developing economies, Chinese Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi (王毅) said on Thursday, a move that comes as Moscow and Beijing seek to counter the West’s global influence. Xi’s visit to Russia would be his second since the Kremlin sent troops into Ukraine in February 2022. China claims to take a neutral position in the conflict, but it has backed the Kremlin’s contentions that Russia’s action was provoked by the West, and it continues to supply key components needed by Moscow for
Japan scrambled fighter jets after Russian aircraft flew around the archipelago for the first time in five years, Tokyo said yesterday. From Thursday morning to afternoon, the Russian Tu-142 aircraft flew from the sea between Japan and South Korea toward the southern Okinawa region, the Japanese Ministry of Defense said in a statement. They then traveled north over the Pacific Ocean and finished their journey off the northern island of Hokkaido, it added. The planes did not enter Japanese airspace, but flew over an area subject to a territorial dispute between Japan and Russia, a ministry official said. “In response, we mobilized Air Self-Defense
CRITICISM: ‘One has to choose the lesser of two evils,’ Pope Francis said, as he criticized Trump’s anti-immigrant policies and Harris’ pro-choice position Pope Francis on Friday accused both former US president Donald Trump and US Vice President Kamala Harris of being “against life” as he returned to Rome from a 12-day tour of the Asia-Pacific region. The 87-year-old pontiff’s comments on the US presidential hopefuls came as he defied health concerns to connect with believers from the jungle of Papua New Guinea to the skyscrapers of Singapore. It was Francis’ longest trip in duration and distance since becoming head of the world’s nearly 1.4 billion Roman Catholics more than 11 years ago. Despite the marathon visit, he held a long and spirited
China would train thousands of foreign law enforcement officers to see the world order “develop in a more fair, reasonable and efficient direction,” its minister for public security has said. “We will [also] send police consultants to countries in need to conduct training to help them quickly and effectively improve their law enforcement capabilities,” Chinese Minister of Public Security Wang Xiaohong (王小洪) told an annual global security forum. Wang made the announcement in the eastern city of Lianyungang on Monday in front of law enforcement representatives from 122 countries, regions and international organizations such as Interpol. The forum is part of ongoing