Cyprus News Agency: News in English, 11-05-10

Cyprus News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article

From: The Cyprus News Agency at <http://www.cyna.org.cy>

CONTENTS

[01] COMMERCE MINISTER NATURAL GAS EXTRACTION

[02] HOUSE PRESIDENT ARMENIAN GENOCIDE TURKEY

[01] COMMERCE MINISTER NATURAL GAS EXTRACTION

Paschalides noted that, ``if necessary, they will call experts so that specific suggestions, proposals and scenarios can be prepared for all pending issues, and so that the Minister can take decisions.``

``Some issues we will be taking to the Council of Ministers for a decision, some others we will approve as they are,`` he said, referring to the responsibilities of the advisory committee on natural gas.

The Minister said that there will be decisions to be taken and that the decisions will be implemented. ``We will proceed and we will carry out the extraction, either at the end of 2011 or the beginning of 2012,`` he added.

Paschalides also referred to the sum of 10 million EUR that had been set by the EU for the Energy Centre, which after an intervention by the Minister had been ``locked`` in favour of Cyprus, and soon work will begin to construct the natural gas distribution network.

``We have locked these 10 million EUR and we can use the funds for any purpose. We will use it mostly for the network, and I have already given instructions to DEFA to proceed. Regardless of how, when and what form of natural gas there will be, the network will proceed immediately,`` he added.

Cyprus has signed two agreements, with Egypt and Israel, delimitating the countrys exclusive economic zone. A third agreement, with Lebanon, has to be ratified by the Lebanese parliament. Israel has located massive reserves in one of its plots, which borders a Cypriot plot.

[02] HOUSE PRESIDENT ARMENIAN GENOCIDE TURKEY

Describing Turkey as an international terrorist, he called upon Ankara to admit its crime and apologize to humanity for it.

If Turkey had been punished for its enormous crime - the Armenian Genocide of 1915 the Turkish invasion against Cyprus may not have taken place, he stressed, addressing Tuesday a school event entitled Armenian Genocide from the past to the present.

Garoyian underlined the responsibilities of the international community, saying that the Armenian Genocide must be condemned and recognized by all and called upon Turkey to admit its crime and apologize to the Armenian people and all humanity.

Unfortunately, he went on to add, the non punishment of Turkey by the international community increases Ankaras intransigence and described Turkey as an international terrorist, who, through military power, attempts to impose its rules on its neighbors and non neighbors.

As long as Turkey remains unpunished, the international community has no right to be proud of todays world order, he stressed, adding the international community should feel as an accomplice as long as the Armenian Genocide and other ethnic cleansing crimes of Turkey, remain unpunished.

He recalled that Cyprus was the first country to raise the issue in the 1960s before the UN General Assembly, asking for an international condemnation of the crime and said that the Cypriot House of Representatives as well as the Greek Parliament were among the first parliaments to have condemned it.

Cyprus News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article