Cyprus News Agency: News in English, 09-03-25

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

CONTENTS

[01] CYPRUS PRESIDENT - VATICAN - OFFICIAL VISIT

[02] CYPRUS TALKS - CHRISTOFIAS TALAT

[03] ALMUNIA CYPRUS ECONOMY

[04] COMMISSION - CYPRUS STABILITY PROGRAMME

[01] CYPRUS PRESIDENT - VATICAN - OFFICIAL VISIT

During his stay Christofias will have a meeting with Pope Benedict XVI. He will also meet with the Secretary of State, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone.

During his visit, Christofias will also be awarded the Highest Honourary Distinction of the City of Rome Lupa by the Mayor of Rome Gianni Alemanno, during a ceremony organized by the leadership of Community of Sant Egidio.

On Friday morning Christofias will hold an official meeting with Pope Benedict XVI. Later on he will have an official meeting with the Secretary of State, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone.

[02] CYPRUS TALKS - CHRISTOFIAS TALAT

UN Secretary General`s Special Representative in Cyprus Taye Brook Zerihoun told reporters after the meeting that the leaders, President of Cyprus Demetris Christofias and Turkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat, held at first their usual tete-a-tete meeting and then continued the discussion on EU matters in a positive and constructive manner.

Their next meeting will be held April 2nd during which they will continue the discussion on EU matters and will then take up the issue of economic matters, in the presence of UN Secretary Generals Special Adviser for Cyprus Alexander Downer who is due to arrive in Cyprus the first weekend of April.

Zerihoun said that the leaders representatives will meet this Friday again and early next week to continue their discussions on EU matters, with a view to helping the leaders conclude their discussions on this subject on their meeting on the 2nd of April.

Replying to questions, the UN official said that the representatives have been continuing discussions when the two leaders were on tete-a-tete meetings, adding they have made advances on particular chapters.

I think the next meetings they will try to put all these things in one document for the leaders to consider on the 2nd of April, he concluded.

[03] ALMUNIA CYPRUS ECONOMY

Almunia said that apart from the measures which have been approved this year in Cyprus the Commission has recommended that the government of Cyprus reverse the situation of the deficit in view of the data concerning the population and the ageing of the population.

Almunia said they believe that public finance in Cyprus for the period 2009-2012 might deteriorate, due to the world financial crises.

``We know that public finances in Cyprus face sustainability problems and we have talked about it in the past,`` he noted.

Almunia also said, ``national budgetary positions in the EU and elsewhere have deteriorated considerably in the last year and are set to deteriorate further on account of the economic crisis we are living through and the discretionary measures rightly adopted by member states to sustain demand and promote investment.``

[04] COMMISSION - CYPRUS STABILITY PROGRAMME

According to a press release issued by the Commission, this should be reversed in the following years in view of the large external imbalances.

The press release noted that Cyprus has adopted a significant stimulus package for 2009 in line with the European Recovery Plan that is expected to result, in the programme, in a budget deficit of nearly 0.6%% in 2009 and 1% in 2010 as opposed to an estimated surplus of roughly the same amount last year.

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