Cyprus Finance Minister Makis Keravnos acknowledged that the country’s economy has lost income due to the significant decrease in the flow of Russian tourists. In this respect reported Based on the Minister’s statement, TASS. The minister noted that the decrease in the flow of Russian tourists occurred after the closure of the airspace to Russia.
“Our economy has suffered mainly through two channels: the tourism sector and imported inflation,” Keravnos said.
According to the publication, in terms of the number of tourists coming to Cyprus, Russia ranks second after the UK with a share of 20% by 2021. The minister noted that accordingly, Russia’s ban on the use of Cyprus airspace “creates a vacuum” in the republic’s tourism sector for 2022.
As Kostas Koumis, head of the Cyprus Tourism State Committee, said earlier, the country’s authorities plan to increase the number of tourists coming to the republic by 5-10% this year compared to last year.
According to the Cyprus Statistical Service, 90.5 thousand tourists arrived in the country in January 2023, more than double the figures for the same period last year. One of the most important reasons for this is the relaxation of coronavirus restrictions.