Republic of CyprusEssay Preview: Republic of CyprusReport this essayRepublic of Cyprus is an island country located in the Mediterranean Sea, at south from Turkey and north from Egypt. It is a former British colony and became independent in 1960. In 1974 the island was effectively partitioned with the northern third inhabited by Turkish Cypriots and the southern two-thirds by Greek Cypriots. In 1983 the Turkish-held area declared itself the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC). The status of Northern Cyprus as a separate entity is recognized only by Turkey. (BBC Profile) The island comprehends a total area of 9251 km2 and a coastline of 648 km.
The entire island entered the EU on May 2004, although the EU acquis applies only to the areas under the internationally recognized government, and is suspended in the area administered by Turkish Cypriots. However, individual Turkish Cypriots able to document their eligibility for Republic of Cyprus citizenship legally enjoy the same rights accorded to other citizens of EU states. (world fact book – CIA)
According to latest data from Worldbank, it has total population is 1.16 Million inhabitants (2016) and a current GDP of US$ 19.56 Billion (2015), putting the country in the 34° position in GDP ranking across European countries. The currency is Euro in the Greek part and Turkish Lira in the Turkish northern part.
The government of Republic of Cyprus consists in a presidential democracy, while the self-declared Turkish Republic of Northen Cyprus is a semi-presidential democracy. The division of Cyprus remains a key issue in the political arena, but UN-brokered peace talks between the Greek and Turkish Cypriot leaderships gained significant momentum following the elections of both of leaders. Nicos Anastasiades (Greek Cypriot) and Mustafa Akinci (Turkish Cypriot) have been holding direct talks for nearly two years in a bid to reunify the island and have certainly accelerated efforts to reach a sustainable solution, most recently at high-profile talks in Geneva and the Swiss resort Mont Pelerin. Although the negotiations are tough, both parties have underscored their strong resolve and determination to maintain the current momentum. (Cyprus Profile).
The area of the Republic of Cyprus under government control has a market economy dominated by the service sector. Tourism, financial services, and real state are the most important sectors. The economy in the area under government control has grown at a rate well above the EU average since 2000. The economy tipped into recession in 2009 due the global crisis and serious problems surfaced in the Cypriot financial sector in early 2011 as the Greek fiscal crisis and euro zone debt crisis deepened. Cyprus has been sought as a base for several offshore business for its highly developed infrastructure. Tourism, financial services, and shipping are significant parts of the economy. Also, significant quantities of offshore natural gas have been discovered and the US-based firm Noble Energy entered
A survey of the Cypriot oil industry was done in 2014. The survey of the North Sea sector of the oil industry surveyed by the Cypriot Petroleum Council concluded:
The area between [EUR] and [USD] is expected to experience a ‘double-digit’ economic upturn, adding to concerns over the status of the oil sector as a global reserve. Oil production has slumped to levels close to a six-month low, with many citing the recent price rise of crude oil and a lack of confidence in global economic recovery.
There have also been many reports in favour of a return to a single market, where the US and other major investors have come out in support of an independent, sovereign-debt-free Cyprus with a monetary union that will take control of the economy and the oil sector
The Bank of Cyprus is exploring a five-year, $5 billion deal for the first time since 2007. The government agreed to hold the first meeting of a five-member committee, chaired by a senior official from the Bank of Cyprus to explore possible ways to reform the financial sector. It has been a long time since there had been a meeting of the committee chaired by a government official while Cyprus experienced the global recession and economic collapse that followed the 2001 World Trade Organization bailout. The committee is chaired by Tsareva Vidal, the Chairwoman, and consists of Vice President Bof Efvan, Ms Taran Soudan, Vice Presidents Liko Arshidi and Michael Zane of PetroCap. It consists of Ms Soudan, Mr Panikirou, Mr Ocagassimou, Mr Fritashio Vassili, Ms Mirohiro Tarekirou and Mr Karyan Hijazi. It is likely that the committee could form part of a new group comprising government ministers, trade partners, officials of the Bank of Cyprus and the Financial Stability Board to address the risks that the committee would pose to banks such as the Bank of Cyprus, the Reserve Bank of Cyprus, the Central Bank, and the Bank of Greece and other state and private entities and to support the development of an orderly trade and investment framework to support a nationalised banking system.”
Some sources say that there will be a large volume of ‘mushroom oil’, the oil extracted from the Middle East, Central Asians, Africa, Asia, Latin America, Asia-Pacific, and North America. The potential for a surge in the price of that oil is immense. However, there is a limit to what will be of that oil when the price declines to levels below the level of pre-war levels. Since its first exploration period in 2011, oil has been extracted in just about every major industrial market in the Middle East. In terms of the cost of extraction, more than $11 billion has been extracted over that time.