In March, the residents of Cyprus witnessed a two-week spectacle called «Russian presidential elections» with a predetermined outcome. It was directed by the Russian Ambassador to Cyprus, FSB Lieutenant General Murat Zyazikov.
In principle, any Russian embassy combines a diplomatic mission with the headquarters of intelligence services — FSB, SVR and GRU. Each residency consists of undercover officers with appropriate diplomatic ranks — attaches, secretaries and advisers. Their officer ranks are known only to their coworkers. The case of Zyazikov is special. It seems that for the first time in the history of the Russian Federation an acting FSB general, who had no diplomatic experience before, was appointed to the post of ambassador. This gives every reason to believe that Zyazikov combines the post of ambassador with the post of FSB resident in Cyprus. This is quite reasonable in an environment where diplomatic relations between countries are frozen and the main work falls to the intelligence services. This turns the diplomatic and cultural activities of the embassy into a series of special operations whose real goals have nothing to do with the stated ones.
He regularly carries out multi-purpose special operations from the arsenals of the KGB-FSB on the island. For example, he organized the visit of representatives of the pseudo-public Russian organization «All-Russian People’s Front» banned in the EU and held a number of propaganda events with them in the cities of Cyprus.
The main result of the special operation called «Russian Presidential Elections 2024 in Cyprus» was not only the total falsification of voting results, which was planned and known in advance but also the development of methodology and creation of a mechanism for simultaneous mobilization of Russian-speaking citizens of Cyprus, agents of Russian influence and pro-Russian Cypriots in preparation for the upcoming elections to the parliament of Cyprus.
The mass participation of Russian citizens in the Kremlin’s electoral special operation in Cyprus allowed the Russian special services, operating under the roof of the embassy, to obtain the data of all those who came to the polling stations and to expand the database of Russian citizens living on the island without additional efforts. This helped the Russian special services to count Russian patriots with Cypriot passports, identify the contingent they needed, outline target groups to work with them, make personal contacts with the right people, and generally determine the potential of the Russian factor to promote their interests in future parliamentary elections in Cyprus.
After the elections, General Zyazikov gave an interview to Rossiyskaya Gazeta correspondent Alexander Gasyuk, who by happy coincidence used to work in Cyprus and was expelled from the island in October 2023 for threatening the country’s security, i.e. simply for espionage. So Zyazikov’s interview with Gasiuk can well be considered a conversation between colleagues.
Zyazikov told Gasiuk about the successful electoral special operation and shared his plans for the future: «The overwhelming majority of Russians temporarily or permanently residing on the island demonstrated a deeply responsible approach and cast their vote in support of our national leader,» FSB General Zyazikov said in the interview. Translated into human language, this means that the vast majority of Russians in Cyprus are Russian patriots, who support Putin and his policies, the war against Ukraine, and the war crimes of the Russian army.
«As a diplomatic mission of Russia in the state, more than 10% of the population of which (which is nothing less than 120 thousand people) are Russian compatriots, we have carried out large-scale preparatory work to organize a full cycle of the electoral process abroad. In the current difficult geopolitical realities against the background of continuous attempts of the West and its sponsored «near-political» fringe groups to interfere with the free will of our citizens and cast doubt on the results of the vote in advance, the «Cypriot» Russians received from us comprehensive information about the modalities of the upcoming elections in the «24/7» mode,»–Zyazikov continues.
This statement contains a poorly concealed threat. He makes it clear that under his control is 10% of the population of Cyprus, half of which, as we know, has Cypriot citizenship and, accordingly, the right to vote. And even though these people live in the European Union, they are ready to carry out orders from Moscow.
«I believe it is of fundamental importance to emphasize that the highest electoral activity shown by our compatriots here is not so much a formal process as a unity of true patriots of their Motherland in choosing the best future for it, which is unique for an EU state. Let me remind you that it was in Cyprus, back in October 2023, that Russians were the first abroad to submit an appeal to President Vladimir Putin with a request to nominate their candidacy for the elections of the head of state in March 2024. And our people, as we know, are used to answering for their words and seeing things through to the end.»
In translation these words mean: here, in a member state of the European Union unfriendly to us, we have full control over the Russian community, which supports Russian policy and is so loyal to Putin personally that it sent him a personal message asking him to remain in power.
With this, he sent a signal to the Cypriot authorities about the possible consequences if they continued to follow the pan-European policy towards Russia.
«Even being far away from their homeland, people have made a conscious choice in favor of further successful development of a sovereign and prosperous Russia, the security of whose borders is reliably ensured.»
Zyazikov thus explains to Cypriots that no advantages of living in a free democratic society, no benefits of Western civilization, economic prosperity, social security, and equality guaranteed in Europe will not change the mentality of Russian people loyal to Putin. Russian people, even living in a civilized society, always strive for dictatorship, violence, war, seizure of other people’s territories, lawlessness, slavery, and bowing to their superiors. All this is united by the common term «Russian world» and Zyazikov, together with the hundred and twenty thousand Russians living on the island, are determined to plant this ideology in Cyprus.
«Vladimir Putin’s effective and proactive state activity in the spheres of foreign and defense policy, economy, inter-ethnic relations, and social development not only in previous years but also in the current period of geopolitical turbulence thoughtlessly inspired by the West, have found a lively response and support among the citizens of the Russian Federation, including those living in Cyprus. Of no less importance for local Russians is the non-alternative attitude of the current President to the protection and sustainable promotion of traditional values, the foundations of a strong family, and original spiritual and moral guidelines, which are an integral part of the global «Russian World». No matter how aggressively, but, of course, in vain, the so-called neoliberal Russophobic ideologists try to «abolish» it. Undoubtedly, the aspirations of our compatriots on the island of Aphrodite are also in line with the decisive steps of the head of the Russian state to increase the role of our country in the world processes, equally relevant for both Russia and Cyprus and to promote the formation of a more equitable multipolar world order.»
Here Zyazikov is extremely frank.
He explicitly states that Russians with Cypriot passports fully support the insanity of the Kremlin dictator and his war against the civilized world, including Cyprus. He also emphasized that they regard Cyprus as an integral part of the global «Russian World» and at any moment can call on Putin to defend it. This statement can be interpreted as a direct threat of a Russian military invasion of Cyprus, in case the country’s authorities do not return to the old relations with the Kremlin.
«The ‘Cypriot’ Russians have made their historic contribution to the guaranteed prosperous future of our united multinational country — they voted in favor of the incumbent head of state V.V. Putin in the 2024 presidential elections of the Russian Federation.»
In this context, Zyazikov claims that «Cypriot» Russians support Russia’s war against the civilized world, including Cyprus, and are ready to take part in this war on the side of Russia at any time on Putin’s orders.
Zyazikov’s interview with Alexander Gasiuk can be seen as a clear warning to the Cypriot authorities about the presence of a fifth column at his disposal in the form of the numerous Russian diaspora on the island. The general hinted that if necessary, he could use it to destabilize the situation in the country in order to keep Cyprus within Russia’s sphere of influence and subordinate it to the Kremlin’s political interests.
The subversive methods by which Zyazikov plans to achieve his goals can be seen in his interview with the Russian propaganda publication Komsomolskaya Pravda on February 10. In it, he made it clear that he was interested in the appearance of «Russian» deputies, i.e. his agents, in the Cypriot parliament.
«Cyprus is a country where we are loved. There are many Russian speakers here — about 10% of the island’s population (over 100 thousand people) speak Russian. But unlike other national minorities, which are much smaller, there are no Russian-speaking members of parliament, and they could represent the interests of the community.»
It is impossible to interpret these words other than as an intention to introduce into the Cypriot parliament Russian deputies controlled by Moscow, who will «represent the interests of the community», i.e. Russian special services. Consequently, very shortly we should expect the emergence of «Russian» parties like the EOP, which has passed away, or the transformation of Cypriot parties into agents of the Kremlin’s interests.
To all appearances, this process has already begun.
In January 2024, it became known that the Cypriot party «Active Citizens-United Cypriot Hunters» nominated the first number in its list for the upcoming elections to the European Parliament in June, the chairman of the Coordinating Council of Russian Compatriots-KSRS, Dmitry Apraksin.
Let us remind our readers that the CSIS is a pseudo public organization created and financed by Moscow that promotes Russian interests in Cyprus and serves as a cover for the Russian secret services.
Apraksin, as well as KCRS, is under the full control of the Russian embassy. It was Zyazikov who instructed him to stage a spectacle in October 2023 with the alleged handing over of the appeal of the Russian diaspora of Cyprus to Putin with a request to run for election in March 2024.
Apraksin (left) and Ziazikov
The story of the transformation of the party «Active Citizens-United Cypriot Hunters» from a political association of hunting enthusiasts into a puppet of the Russian security services is curious and certainly requires close attention.
Established in 2018 in Cyprus, the «party of hunters», failed in 2021 to overcome the electoral barrier and get into parliament. Until June 2023 almost nothing was heard about it. But on June 21, 2023, a meeting was held between the chairman of the Hunters’ Party, Nicholas Prodromou, and the head of the Russian Cultural Center, Alina Radchenko. Apparently, Alina Fedorovna, brilliantly coped with the recruitment of the Cypriot politician, as the parties agreed to hold a joint march on July 8 » in defense of traditional family values and children».
Apraksin, Radchenko and Prodromou
As reported by the Rossotrudnichestvo website, «the action took place on the day of the Russian holiday «Day of Family, Love and Fidelity.» The protesters carried the flags of Cyprus, Greece, and Russia, as well as flags with the tricolor emblem of the traditional family «Mom, Dad, I — a happy family», which has become a symbol of uniting the citizens of Cyprus in defense against Western encroachments on the rights of families and children. People chanted «Hands off our children and education!».
Since the summer of 2023, the party began organizing rallies and protest marches against the introduction of sex education for children in Cypriot schools, which became mandatory after the signing of the relevant law by Cypriot President Anastasiades in December 2022. What is interesting — all the events of the party were organized in cooperation with the Russian Center for Science and Culture in Nicosia, Rossotrudnichestvo, and the Coordination Council of Russian Compatriots in Cyprus. That is, with Russian structures playing the role of agents of Russian influence in Cyprus.
And in January 2024, as mentioned above, the head of the Coordinating Council of Russian Compatriots Dmitry Apraksin took the first place in the party’s list of candidates for the elections to the European Parliament.
It is impossible to understand for what reasons the Cypriot Hunters’ Party included an unknown Russian migrant in its list of voters if we exclude the most common bribery or collusion of the party with the Russian security services.
In the same month, another event took place in Cyprus, which has obvious connections with the events described earlier, as well as with Russia and its intelligence services.
In January 2024, a new political party with the affectionate name «Elpis»-Hope emerged in Cyprus. On January 9, the founding meeting of the party’s politburo was held in Nicosia.
This photo shows members of the party’s politburo after the founding meeting. The second from the left, Adamos Katsantonis-communist, leftist progressive, calls himself a personal friend of North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un, a former member of the political council of the «Russian party» ΕΟΠ created by the Russian special services.
The one on the far right, Marios Fotiou. A very interesting character, the story about him is a little below.
The leader of the party, Andreas Theofilaktou (not present in the photo), is known for his extreme right-wing views and his inexplicable love for Russia and Putin, whom he openly admires.
Andreas Theofilaktou
The main task of the Elpis party is the active development of ties with Russia. Andreas Theofilaktou publicly stated this in an interview with the Kremlin propaganda and disinformation agency RIA Novosti on 12.03.2024 «Hope is the name of our political party. And that’s the hope of being with the Russian people again… A lot can happen when you have a united country like Russia on your side. I realize we are a small country, but Cyprus is at a strategic point. It is no coincidence that the British still maintain bases on our island. So an alliance with Russia will have a mutually beneficial effect,» –Teofilaktou told the Kremlin agency.
«Elections to various authorities will be held in Cyprus on June 9. The Elpis party will be running candidates for local municipalities. Many Russians are living in Cyprus who have married citizens of this country or opened their own businesses on the island. But Cypriots have a lot to lose because of the sanctions, above all the tourist business is suffering,» –the Elpis party leader added.
On February 10, 2024, a month after the party’s founding politburo meeting, Elpis leaders, Andreas Theofilaktou and Marios Fotiou, unexpectedly found themselves in Armenia, where for the first time as politicians of an EU member state they took part in a public action, laying flowers at a monument in Yerevan’s central square.
A strange start to political activity for newly minted Cypriot politicians. But this is at first glance, if one does not know the true purpose of their trip.
According to the sources, who wished to remain unnamed, the real purpose of their trip to Armenia was a meeting with the Moscow curator. At the meeting, they presented a report on their work, and received instructions and funding for the future projects of the party. The curator of the Elpis party turned out to be a member of the Russian parliament, Vitaly Milonov, who is under EU sanctions.
The photo shows Milonov (second from right), Theophylactou (first from left), and Fotiou (third from left).
The meeting in Yerevan was organized because of Milonov’s travel ban to the European Union and Schengen countries. In the current situation, a trip to Moscow for Andreas Theofilaktou and Marios Fotiou would be tantamount to a clean confession of working for the Kremlin. Therefore, they met in the capital of Armenia, which has direct air communication with both countries.
A source close to the party’s leadership said on condition of anonymity that Milonov suggested in the middle of last year that Fotiou and Theophylact gather Cypriots with pro-Russian views around them, create a political party with them and nominate them as candidates first for municipal and then parliamentary elections. The political views and beliefs of these people do not matter. The main thing is that these people have a warm attitude towards Russia and support its criminal policy. Hence the presence in the party leadership of people with diametrically different political views, such as Theofilaktou and Katsantonis.
Marios Fotiou
However, the idea of creating such a party does not belong to Milonov, it was suggested to him by the Russian embassy, or rather from the Russian special services operating in the embassy. They considered his connections in Cyprus strong and extensive enough to realize this project.
Milonov’s inextricable ties to Russian state security are well known. Dmitry Zapolsky, a well-known St. Petersburg journalist and author of the book Putinburg, told the author of these lines about his recruitment and work for the FSB two years before his mysterious death. He knew Milonov closely and even, as he said, was friends with him. Zapolsky spoke of him with some warmth, calling him a very intelligent man, albeit cynical, who understands the rules of the game in Putin’s Russia. According to him, Milonov realizes the insanity of Putin’s policy, but to survive and succeed in such conditions, he brilliantly plays the obscurantist mad at Orthodoxy. The FSB recruited Milonov when he was an assistant to Starovoitova. After her assassination, his political career went sharply uphill.
Milonov entrusted the creation of the party to his confidant in Cyprus, Marios Fotiou, and, being a man skilled in political technology, suggested the name-Elpis-Hope.
Milonov and Fotiu have known each other for a long time. In the early 2000s, Milonov bought real estate in the Cypriot town of Ayia Napa, where Fotiou lives, and registered it in the name of his father-in-law. That’s probably when they met.
Milonov and Fotiou
Fotiou became his confidant and executor of delicate errands.
In 2014, at Milonov’s invitation, Marios Fotiou attended as an «international observer» the election of the governor of St. Petersburg, FSB General Georgy Poltavchenko, and participated with Milonov in the consecration of a new church there.
In 2015, Fotiou, as head of the defunct Cypriot Orthodox Human Rights Movement, appealed to Cypriot President Anastasiades with a call to deploy a Russian military base in Cyprus. This was reported by Izvestia.
In April 2017, Fotiu and Milonov visited the Russian-occupied territory of Ukraine, the self-proclaimed «Donetsk People’s Republic». They visited the town of Mykolaivka not only to express moral support to the separatists from the «DNR», but also to deliver clothes, medicines, radios, and telescopic sights for small arms to the pro-Russian terrorists, which is a crime against the independence and territorial integrity of Ukraine.
There, Milonov and Fotiu in camouflage were photographed with weapons in their hands in the company of pro Russian separatists.
On February 26, after a meeting with Milonov, Andreas Theofilaktou submitted documents for party registration to the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
In early March, Andreas Teofilaktou visited a recruitment and propaganda event organized by the Kremlin called «World Youth Festival» held in Sochi on March 1-7.
On March 12, Andreas Teofilaktou gave an interview to the Kremlin propaganda publication RIA Novosti in which he stated his desire to be with the Russian people and actively develop ties with Russia.
The new party is a pure bluff, an operation of the Russian special services to destabilize Cypriot society with the help of their agents. Such a special operation involving such a person as Milonov can be carried out only with the authorization of the FSB leadership.
This is not the first attempt to create this kind of fake party if we take into account the existing in Cyprus from 2017 to 2021. «Russian party» of the EOP.
The activity of Russian special services in Cyprus and their agents of influence has sharply increased with the appearance of Zyazikov in Nicosia. The scale and aggressiveness of the actions of the Russian security services to destabilize Cyprus with the help of Russian migrants and Cypriots with Russian connections are alarming.
Behind them, we can see the work of an experienced security officer Zyazikov, who is well oriented in the local conditions and masterfully uses methods that have been practiced by the Soviet KGB.
Russia, in the person of Zyazikov, demonstrates outright contempt for the territorial integrity of Cyprus and the aspirations of Cypriot society to unite the divided island.
Zyazikov openly challenged Cypriot society and the government of the republic by organizing elections in the Turkish-occupied part of the country. With this demarche, he actually took a step towards recognizing the independence of the northern part of the island under illegal Turkish occupation, which is incompatible with his diplomatic status and the rank of ambassador.
No one has allowed such an openly hostile step toward Cyprus since the Turkish invasion in 1974.
Moscow needs to destabilize the European Union. This is a priority for its agents. The appointment of FSB General Zyazikov as Ambassador to Nicosia fits perfectly into this logic. Behind this appointment, the Kremlin’s plans are clearly visible.
For many reasons, Moscow sees Cyprus as a weak link in the European collective security, from which it is easiest to start destabilizing the entire European Union. Statements and actions of General Zyazikov leave no room for doubt that he seeks to destabilize the socio-political situation in the Republic of Cyprus, as a result of which it is planned to bring pro-Russian forces to power in the country. To achieve this goal, he has all the necessary tools at his disposal — democratic elections and a cohesive, well-organized and obedient fifth column of the Kremlin, which is the Russian diaspora of Cyprus and Cypriots with pro-Russian views who have joined it. Whether Cypriot society will have the wisdom not to allow a hostile minority controlled by Moscow to seize political power in the country and preserve itself as a free European nation, we will soon see.
Boris Demash, especially for Cyprus Daily News