EC: Cyprus has not applied for financial assistance

Cyprus has not submitted any application for European financial assistance, a European Commission spokesman has said, adding that the Commission will not speculate on how close or how far a country may be to that assistance.

Asked how close Cyprus was to a call to the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) and invited to comment on reports that the Commission is disappointed with Cyprus’ efforts to get a loan from China, the spokesman said that it is true that in the case of Cyprus there is a very heavy exposure to Greece, to the Greek economy, not only to the financial sector of Greece and this has had an important effect on the Cypriot economy as a whole and on the banking sector in particular.

He added that “this includes the losses made because of the private sector involvement in the second programme of Greece. So the impact of that operation was particularly felt in the Cypriot banking sector”.

The spokesman underlined that “the Cypriot authorities are addressing these risks in a decisive manner.”

“I have no comment to make on contacts that Cyprus may have with third countries. It is of course their sovereign decision (and there is) absolutely no objections, no disappointment at all,” he said.

Furthermore he noted that ''we have to persevere and to keep cool heads,'' adding that this applies to any Euro area member state which is under pressure of the markets.