New clouds are appearing on the horizon of Beijing’s relations with Nicosia on the occasion of the behavior of the Chinese consortium CPP-METRON Consortium Ltd (CMC) which undertook the construction of the liquefied natural gas (LNG) jetty in the Vasiliko area.
The President of Cyprus, Nikos Christodoulidis, trying to put a definitive end to the serious issue which has been going on for some time, requested and will have a meeting with the Ambassador of China in Cyprus on Monday with the exclusive topic of discussion, as he stated today, the terminal in Vasilikos. Indicative of the seriousness of the situation as well as the exhaustion of Nicosia’s patience with the consortium is Christodoulides’ statement that “the state is not blackmailed”.
Speaking to journalists, Nikos Christodoulidis said that the project undertaken has three phases: “It is the ship, it is the land, it is also the terminal where there is some progress, some (projects) are progressing and some are not progressing”. He stated that he is willing to find solutions to the problems and that he is not going to enter into a public dialogue with the company.
The last report has to do specifically with Nicosia’s irritation with the attitude of the CMC consortium to issue statements in order to justify its occasional refusal to proceed with the implementation of parts of the agreed under various pretexts.
What exhausted the patience of the Cypriot side was the move by the Chinese side to accuse the Cypriot of changes in what it had requested from the CMC in relation to the construction of the pier, in order to conclude that the implementation of the agreed is not economically viable for the same . Something that Nicosia rejects by pointing out that from time to time the consortium presents such obstacles trying to pressure Cyprus into accepting inferior solutions, as was done with the “Prometheus” ship at the beginning of the year which was deemed unsuitable.
“I have to say that I am surprised by the company’s need for public interventions”, President Christodoulidis emphasized today. “The state is not blackmailed, the state is faithful to its obligations and we always respond and we are here and there is this issue to deal with,” he said. However, he indicated that Cyprus has “a plan that must be implemented”, he emphasized, which is related, as he mentioned, to the progress in Vassiliko and the work undertaken by this particular company with specific commitments, chronological and many others.
Asked if there is a plan B, the President of the Republic said that “of course there is a plan B, we are obliged to think regarding a plan B, but I don’t want us to get to this point.” “The intention of the Government is to proceed with everything provided for under the contract”, concluded the Cypriot President.
Source: ertnews
Read also:
Mitsotakis’ clear message to Skopje: “Absolute compliance of North Macedonia on the issue of the name”
Social Tourism 2024-2025: When do applications start, what are the scoring criteria
Puff Daddy: Cruel video shows him badly beating his ex-partner in a hotel hallway
The Pelion roller coaster is back on the tracks
#Christodoulidis #Chinese #energy #state #blackmailed
