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The EBRD already invests in a number of eurozone members, including Slovenia, Slovakia, Estonia and Latvia. But each of those was already a long-time recipient of EBRD funding when they joined the currency bloc.
Cyprus has been a shareholder of the bank since March 1991 but has until now been a provider of funds to other nations, rather than a recipient or, in bank parlance, a country of operation.
"Cyprus, an EBRD member, has expressed an interest in going further and becoming a country of operation for a limited period", said EBRD President Suma Chakrabarti. A spokesman for Cyprus's finance ministry confirmed the government had asked for financial help.
The decision to invest in Cyprus would have to be approved by the EBRD's shareholders, which include the European Union and its individual members, the US, Russia, Japan and a number of other nations. The decision could be taken when those shareholders gather for their annual meeting in Warsaw in May.
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S&D: "The EU must help Cyprus on the road to a sustainable recovery"
Speaking in Nicosia on January 31, S&D Group president Hannes Swoboda said: "Now is the time to help Cyprus with more solidarity from the EU institutions and Member States. There is a need for money and investment in the real economy in order to restart growth, create new jobs and get Cyprus on the road to sustainable recovery. The EU should offer practical help on this immediately. We need new ideas, new methods and approaches. Cyprus does not deserve the Turkish occupation, but also not an 'occupation' by the Troika."
Sophocles Sophocleous MEP, head of the Cypriot S&D delegation, said: "Austerity measures, instead of showing the way out of the crisis, have actually deepened the recession and led to sky-rocketing unemployment across Europe. It is therefore time to change Europe. We propose our own social-democratic alternative for a better future based on growth, investment and decent jobs. Our answer to the current crisis is a better balance between economic and social concerns. It is time to abolish Troikas."
Press release © S&D