Cyprus waiting for Open Skies deal with Russia

Cyprus is actively pursuing an Open Skies policy on aviation, according to Communications and Works minister Tasos Mitsopoulos, who said that after a relevant agreement with Ukraine, the government was making efforts to start the dialogue with Russia.

Mitsopoulos said that the possibility was being explored to establish flights with countries from Central Asia, such as Kazakhstan.

The minister said that the agreement with Ukraine is in effect all year round and that the Russian side has already been contacted in order to commence a similar dialogue with Moscow, however there has been no response yet.

Russia is expected to provide a record 600,000 tourists this year, up from 480,000 in 2012, taking a significant part of arrivals from among the 2.5 mln tourists who visit each year.

Referring to a meeting he had last week with representatives from Israel’s El Al airline in order to resume flights after more than a decade, Mitsopoulos said that the discussion focused on the possibility of more frequent and lower cost flights. Only Arkia currently flies from Israel, while a bilateral agreement allows Cyprus Airways to operate on that route.

The Minister added that an Iraqi airliner had also displayed interest in benefiting from a series of incentives and that flights may start soon.