Watchdog finds possible abuse of power by former Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades

NICOSIA - Cyprus' anti-corruption watchdog on Tuesday said it had identified possible abuse of power by former president Nicos Anastasiades while in office, referring the matter to the island's top prosecutor for further consideration.

The alleged violations include irregularities in campaign financing, alleged efforts to influence investigations into businessmen bankrolling political parties and alleged institutional interference in matters affecting his own interests.

They also include the alleged use of political influence before his election to advance citizenship applications linked to clients of his law firm, including wealthy Russian businessmen.

Anastasiades, who has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing, was president of Cyprus between 2013 and 2023. During that time, thousands of wealthy investors acquired a Cypriot passport in an investment-for-citizenship scheme. It was discontinued in 2020 after a string of exposes that the scheme was running without proper oversight.

The Independent Anti-Corruption Authority said it was basing its assessment on a "balance of probabilities" rather than the criminal standard of proof.

"The findings do not constitute criminal convictions and all individuals concerned remain entitled to the presumption of innocence," it said.

The two-year investigation has become a test of Cyprus' willingness to scrutinise alleged wrongdoing at the highest levels of government.

The authority has been investigating allegations by former Anastasiades aide Makarios Drousiotis that, during his tenure, Cyprus developed a system in which political power, business interests, lawyers and state institutions became closely intertwined, weakening accountability and the rule of law.

Drousiotis, an investigative journalist, made the claims in his book "Mafia State". Anastasiades has countered the claims in an account published last year titled "The Sycophant".

- Michele Kambas; Editing by Ros Russell/Reuters