Cyprus has never opposed EU’s proposed sanction for Russia to be barred from SWIFT – the world’s most-used interbank communications system, Foreign Minister Ioannis Kasoulides told state radio early on Monday.
Kasoulides also said this was fake news which was deliberately spread around to harm Cyprus.
It is well known the proposed sanction would directly affect the Cypriot economy – mainly in the services sector. Because a large number of Russian companies are based on the Mediterranean island carrying out major bank transactions.
SWIFT, short for the “Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication”, is a secure messaging system that facilitates rapid cross-border payments.
Its standardised system of secure messages is highly trusted, and allows banks to process high volumes of transactions very quickly. It has become the backbone of international finance.
