by Nina Achmatova

Greek media are reporting that Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades has asked Archbishop Chrysostomos II to speak to Moscow to assist in talks between Nicosia and the Kremlin for a € 2.5 billion loan. Cypriot Church offers to help the government cope with the crisis.

Moscow (AsiaNews) - The Orthodox Church in Cyprus and Russia is offering assets to the government of Cyprus in its Plan B to rescue the country from financial collapse. Archbishop Chrysostomos II, head of the Cypriot Church, said that he would put the church's assets at the country's disposal to help pull it out of its present financial crisis. He made the after parliament rejected a plan to tax bank deposits to secure a US$ 10 billion international (ECB, EU and IMF) bailout.

"The wealth of the church is at the disposal of the country," Chrysostomos said after he with Anastasiades this morning. In fact, the Church is willing to mortgage its assets on the island to buy government bonds. However, the archbishop did not give any details about how much he hopes to raise this way.

The church is the largest landowner on the island and has stakes in businesses including the country's Hellenic Bank, with total assets estimated to run into tens of millions of euros.

Cypriot leaders are desperately trying to find a way to avoid bankruptcy for the state, and are looking towards Russia as a savior. Many Russian oligarchs have invested in the island and turned it into their personal strongbox.

The Russian Federation is also in heavily involved in Cyprus. An estimated € 14 to 27 billion (US$ 18 to 35 billion) from Russia have been deposited in the island.

To deal with the crisis, Cyprus Finance Minister Michalis Sarris arrived in Moscow today to get an extension to a € 2.5 billion (US$ 3.2 billion) line of credit that Moscow gave in 2011 and is due in 2016.

However, the Kremlin does not appear happy about it, especially since it was not consulted on the "tax" on bank accounts and does not appear willing to help. This is where the Church comes in.

According to Greek Church news agency romfea.gr, Cypriot President Anastasiades called on Chrysostomos to appeal to the Patriarch of Moscow and All the Russias Kirill to intercede with the Russian government.

Earlier, Russian agencies, quoted the head of the Orthodox Church of Cyprus as criticising European Union policies for "strangling" the island's economy.

 

• cyprus
• russia
• financial
• crisis